In my intro-level journalism, the use of uncredited and/or unauthorized AI is prohibited. Yet many UNC students were cheating. After explaining to the class that some community members were turning in assignments that appeared to be entirely AI-generated, I gave everyone an in-class mandatory scored-but-ungraded quiz to check their knowledge regarding the MEJO 153 syllabus rules along with UNC rules from the Office of the Provost, which outlines expectations for responsible AI use and what constitutes academic dishonesty. I wasn't sure if students were cheating because they didn't understand rules, but they did: most scores were above 95. Afterwards, we talked through how other classes and professors permitted AI use, which was chaotic and all over the map. Then we voted on retroactive consequences for AI-related academic dishonesty in a Google poll with 10 options. The majority vote won. Cheating subsided.
Erin Siegal McIntyre, Assistant ProfessorJournalism
MEJO 153, News Writing and Reporting
Enrollment: 18