AI in the classroom is important for real-world skills, college professors say

Will the use of generative AI (genAI) tools degrade human intelligence over the long term?

That question — and lingering concerns about cheating and hallucinations — are among the issues US university professors are grappling with as a new academic year approaches. Even as some embrace the technology, others look askance at generative AI tools.

But because of how quickly it’s been adopted in the business world, completely shutting out AI in classrooms could hamper students’ professional development, several professors told Computerworld.

“If integrated well, AI in the classroom can strengthen the fit between what students learn and what students will see in the workforce and world around them,” argued Victor Lee, associate professor at Stanford’s Graduate School of Education.

GenAI companies are certainly doing their part to lure students into using their tools by offering new learning and essay-writing features. Google has gone so far as to offer Gemini free for one year, and OpenAI late last month introduced “Study Mode” to help students “work through problems step by step instead of just getting an answer,” the company said in a blog post.

Selecting the “study mode” in ChatGPT details how the genAI tool reaches an answer to a query. Google has a similar experimental tool called “Learn About” and a tool called NotebookLM, which recently got a host of new genAI features.

Grammarly has also introduced new genAI tools to help students with assignments. The AI Grader agent “looks at your assignment rubric and gives you suggestions like your professor would, and a grade prediction before you submit your work,” Grammarly CEO Shishir Mehrotra explained in a LinkedIn entry.  The agents work in existing user interfaces; users don’t need to cut and paste or type in prompts.

The agents can flag unsupported claims in students’ writing and explain why evidence is needed and recommend the use of credible sources, Luke Behnke, vice president of product management at Grammarly, said in an interview. “Colleges recognize it’s their responsibility to prepare students for the workforce, and that now includes AI literacy,”  Behnke said.

Universities are also implementing AI in their own learning management systems and providing students and staff access to Google’s Gemini, Microsoft’s Copilot and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. 

For example, Duke University in North Carolina provides all staff and students free access to OpenAI’s GPT-5, including the mathematics and coding tools. “University offices that work on enhancing teaching and learning quality are working really hard to guide faculty on ways to use AI,” Lee said.

Longji Cuo, an associate professor at the University of Colorado, in Boulder, teaches a course on AI and machine learning to help mechanical engineering students learn to use the technology to solve real-world engineering problems. 

Cuo encourages students to use AI as an agent to help with teamwork, projects, coding, and presentations in class. “My expectation on the quality of the work is much higher,” Cuo said, adding that students need to “demonstrate creativity on the level of a senior-level doctoral student or equivalent.”

Cuo asks students not to simply accept whatever results advanced genAI models spit out, as they may be riddled with factual errors and hallucinations. “Students need to select and read more by themselves to create something that people don’t recognize as an AI product,” Cuo said.

Some professors are trying to mitigate AI use by altering coursework and assignments, while others prefer not to use it at all, said Paul Shovlin, an assistant professor of AI and digital rhetoric at Ohio University.

But students have different requirements and use AI tools for personalized learning, collaboration, and writing, as well as for coursework workflow, Shovlin said. He stressed, however, that ethical considerations, rhetorical awareness, and transparency remain important in demonstrating appropriate use.

“GenAI isn’t a light switch that is flipped on or off,” he said. “GenAI has consolidated a lot of capabilities in one site.”

Shovlin’s new media composition course uses genAI as a tool to build assets and complement skillsets needed for student multimedia projects. “This means students can focus on the larger assignment and not sweat some basic building blocks that aren’t the basis for the class,” he said.

For example, in the graphic novel assignment, Shovlin demonstrates how image creation tools can create assets that can be integrated into graphic design in a collage-like manner. 

“Drawing is not a learning outcome for the class, but successfully engaging in a substantial multimedia composition is …,” he said.

GenAI can be useful in the classroom as long as a student is learning, asking critical questions, and developing skills, said Jack Gold, principal analyst at J. Gold Associates. “It is very helpful if you know the right questions to ask and if you find a competent AI model that knows about your subject matter,” Gold said.

But lazy students who rely on genAI tools to write papers are only undermining their skills development, he said.

Gold predicted that one day, AI agents will be able to work with students on their personalized education needs. “Rather than having one teacher for 30 students, you’ll have one AI agent personalized to each student that will guide them along.”AI in the classroom is important for real-world skills, college professors say – ComputerworldRead More