13.9: How do I know which use of AI is allowed and which isn’t?

Ideally, your teacher will have considered how AI might support or get in the way of the specific learning goals of each assignment and of the course as a whole. But AI can be used in many ways, its capacities are changing quickly, and teachers may not have had time or training to fully develop their policies.

Matt Miller discusses twelve possible student uses of AI (not necessarily recommended):

• “​​Student re-writes AI-generated content with own improvement ideas
• AI does student work for them with no thought by the student
• AI writes content but student edits it based on learning from class
• AI generates multiple drafts; student chooses best parts of AI drafts
• Student writes bullet points to include but AI writes the draft
• AI guides student through writing process as a “writing coach”
• Student creates content until stuck; asks AI for help to get “unstuck”
• Student writes a draft; AI writes a draft; student adds best AI ideas
• Student gathers stats/research via AI but creates all content on own
• Student consults internet/AI for writing ideas but creates content on own
• Student writes all content but asks AI for feedback to improve
• Student does all work without any assistance from AI, the internet, etc.”

If you’d like to use AI in a particular way, and you’re not sure if it fits in the teacher’s policy, it’s best to just ask. As Kathryn Conrad puts it in Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights for Education, “You should be able to ask questions of your instructor and administration about the use of automated and/or generative systems prior to submitting assignments without fear of reprisal or assumption of wrongdoing.“ You might have a good discussion with your teacher about how a particular use would stimulate critical thinking or get in the way.

Ultimately, what matters is how much you are learning and whether AI is helping or hurting. If the teacher allows AI use but you try it and feel you are not learning as much as you would working on your own, it probably makes sense to set AI aside.