AI and Assessment: What The Hell Is Going On

Written by Ethan Rogacion (He/Him) | VUWSA Academic VP

When Dan - of Salient News Editor fame - interviewed me a few weeks ago about what the University’s been up to in the AI space, I felt a great sense of worry: not from what Dan might have to ask, but because of how much ground I might have to cover. 

Even though the University only ratified its Generative AI Policy in February, the technology’s rapid evolution has meant that the landscape at Te Herenga Waka has changed significantly this trimester alone. Under the policy framework, what acceptable AI use looks like in each course comes down to the discretion of each Course Coordinator, which creates a lot of uncertainty for students.

Where We Are Now

When Te Aka Tauira - VUWSA surveyed students about their AI use in March, over half of our respondents (53%) told us they use AI tools at least occasionally. This is a reality that staff across the University are grappling with, but because the policy is so broad, responses and solutions have been varied. Infamously, what we’ve seen from some Faculties in response to AI-based cheating is a regression back to handwritten, in-person exam tasks.

Anecdotally, there’s a lot of suspicion amongst academics about how their students use AI, with many holding deep concerns that their students will replace all of their work with AI. While AI is absolutely worthy of critique - from its harmful environmental impacts to its intellectual property implications - pretending students don’t use it isn’t exactly a feasible solution. In some courses, this has also led to lecturers placing outright bans on any AI use.

Becky Cody, one of VUWSA’s Advocates, works closely with students facing academic integrity claims. Talking to me about the trends that she’s seen so far this year, Cody said, “I see a lot of referencing issues, where students use AI as a referencing tool. The students create the references, but then put it through AI and it jumbles them up”

“I see most commonly, as well, international students being affected by academic integrity, which includes AI.”

Where To From Here

The question that faces the University now is how to deal with all of this moving forward. In my role at VUWSA, I work closely with the Academic Office on AI guidelines and the future of assessment. Right now, the big conversations happening in the meeting rooms of the University is how to do assessment in a way that both preserves academic integrity, while recognising the need for the University to engage in a discussion about how this place teaches in an AI-context into the future.

This, obviously, isn’t an issue unique to Vic. Across the motu, and across the world, we’ve seen a wide range of responses. From a rise in oral exams and a lolly scramble to figure out the best way to AI-proof digital assessment, Universities are trying very hard to figure out what the best solution is.

At VUWSA, we’re working to ensure that any decisions the University makes are pragmatic and focused first and foremost on student experience.

Having issues with academic integrity? VUWSA’s Advocacy Service can help! Get in touch via advocacy@vuwsa.org.nz