AI Use in Academic Work

The use of tools that help students learn to write better, such as the Writing Center, Online Writing Lab, and Grammarly corrections, might not be a violation of the Academic Honor Code, since these are learning tools that provide suggestions regarding the student's own work. However, students should check with their instructors to make sure.

The use of generative AI, such as ChatGPT, CoPilot, and Grammarly’s generative AI option with rewrites, might be a violation of the Academic Honor Code because the language model is completing some or all of the assignment instead of the student, preventing the student from fully meeting the learning objectives. Some instructors may allow AI. If the instructor does not specify that AI is allowed, students should assume that it is not. 

Faculty Development has some great resources regarding AI in academia, including how to talk to your students about AI and example syllabus statements. 

Detectors can identify assignments that misuse generative AI. However, it is important to recognize that even legitimate assistance from software like Grammarly might activate AI detection tools, potentially leading to mistaken identifications in this regard. Therefore, if faculty members suspect a violation, they should first discuss the matter with the student, inquiring about their writing process, sources, and so forth. This conversation will allow the student an opportunity to present drafts, resources, and document properties that could potentially dispel any concerns. 

If faculty still suspect a violation after meeting with the student, they should follow the procedures for reporting honor code violations via the Honor Code process.