In the ever-evolving landscape of education, technological advancements have consistently brought forth new opportunities and challenges. One such technological marvel which has taken the world by storm is ChatGPT.
Chat Generative Pre-Trained Transformer, popularly known as ChatGPT is a Natural Language Processing Tool fuelled by AI Technology which allows users to have human-like conversations with a Chabot. ChatGPT was created by OpenAI, an AI and research company. The company launched ChatGPT on November 30, 2022.
According to a survey done by Swiss Bank, ChatGPT has revolutionized the world of technology by being the fastest growing apps of all time. It achieved the milestone of 100 million active users within 2 months of its launch in comparison to Twitter which took almost 9 months to reach the 100 million users mark.
Elon Musk, one of the investors of OPenAI before leaving remarked, “ChatGPT is scary good. We are not far from dangerously strong AI,”
The Big Question for Education: Are they cheating, or Just tools?
The rise of access to free internet has put data and information at the fingertips of students around the world and now AI tools like ChatGPT are quickly proving to be a disruptive force in the classroom. Educators around the world are grappling with the dilemma put forward by AI powered tools in the classroom – will these tools enhance the learning process of the students or provide a smarter alternative to cheat?
ChatGPT is a Natural Language Processing System based on ANN. The model is trained on a humongous amount of text data which allows it to understand and generate natural human language. The latest release GPT4 is far more powerful than its predecessor and can process about eight times as many words as the previous version. However, all great inventions comes with its shortcomings:
Only as good as the trained data: After all, ChatGPT is a machine learning algorithm whose foundation is based on some predefined data and complex algorithms. This means that it may not always be able to provide accurate complex problems or situations that require human judgment and decision-making.
Fabricated Citations: Tests and first hand reviews by several users have revealed that ChatGPT generates completely fabricated citations and bibliographic resources. This limitation has been referred to as “hallucination”. Although with further improvement in the model this “hallucination” effect can be corrected significantly but for the time being it poses a significant threat to research works.
Threat to Motivation and creativity: While the rise of the internet has led to small tweaks in the learning mechanisms, with more tools to detect plagiarism by comparing a student’s digitally submitted assignment against a database of known content, AI tools are not susceptible to such checks. The advent of ChatGPT would rob students of their motivation, creativity and critical thinking; as well as there is a fear among the educators that it would create a culture of widespread cheating and plagiarism.
Personalized Care and attention: While ChatGPT has the capability to provide feedback and guidance on academic performance, it will fail to provide the emotional support and encouragement that students need to overcome challenges or stay motivated which only a mentor or a teacher can do building a sense of trust and bonding with the students.
What’s the solution then?
- We have to recognize and come to terms with the fact that ChatGPT and other AI based tools are here to stay. So rather than devising ways to ban them, we have to make attempts to integrate them with our pedagogy.
- Though AI based learning tools can provide personalized learning experience, it can never replace the value of human interaction and personal attention that a teacher can provide. So educators and instructors around the world have to leverage on this limitation.
- In order to address concerns relating to cheating and plagiarism, the course pedagogy should focus on skill development, which will be crucial as the students enter the professional world. This should not only include hard skills such as data analysis, coding, project management, research; but also soft skills, such as communication & public speaking, teamwork, empathy, leadership and agility.
- The design of assignments and assessments should be more meaningful involving experiential learning such as case studies, role plays, internships or paper presentation
Conclusion
As Chat GPT continues to disrupt the landscape of higher and management education, embracing its potential is crucial for educators, institutions, and students. While the transformative effects of AI-powered technologies may pose challenges, they also present opportunities for more personalized, accessible, and engaging learning experiences.
By addressing ethical considerations, redefining teaching approaches and course pedagogy Globsyn Business School built on an edifice of Innovation, Research and technology is trying to leverage the power of ChatGPT to create an innovative and future-ready management education ecosystem that prepares students for the dynamic challenges of the 21st century.
Doyel Mukherjee
Research Associate
Globsyn Business School