Many AI tools such as ChatGPT, Google Bard, DALLE-2 have become widely available and are becoming more frequently used in education and at the workplace.

As the popularity around AI tools is growing, more students are using content generated by AI to support their learning, and in some cases generating content used within assessed work. This guidance has been designed to support students in understanding how and when they can use AI tools whilst upholding the University’s expectations of academic integrity.

This guidance will explain in what cases you can use AI and how to acknowledge its use.

Here are a number of examples on how you can use AI:

• Brainstorming ideas for a project, business project, essays and others;

• Generating ideas for graphics, images and visuals;

• Answering questions on already available information;

• Reviewing responses;

• Helping to improve your grammar and writing structure;

• Debugging code;

• Write queries in ChatGPT and use the Regenerate response function to examine alternative responses.

It is important to note that AI tools are simply tools and do not have understanding of the content they are producing or how it can be applied to the real world.

The creators of ChatGPT, OpenAI, have provided helpful guidance for educators and students.

Summary of AI tools’ limitations:

• AI tools frequently get things wrong and are not always factually accurate, even when the content looks plausible and well written.

• They perform better in subjects which are widely written about and are less accurate in more niche subjects or specialist areas.

• Frequently they are not connected to the internet, so information and resources could be some months out of date.

• They cannot provide accurate references – ChatGPT and other tools will “invent” references that appear real, but in fact do not exist.

• They can perpetuate stereotypes, biases and Western perspectives.

By relying too heavily on these tools, you risk limiting your chances to develop essential academic and professional skills such as writing, critical thinking, and evaluation. These skills play a crucial role in your educational journey and future career advancement. Nevertheless, these tools can serve as a platform for nurturing critical analysis and evaluation abilities. One approach is to study and critique the output they generate, allowing you to make informed judgments regarding its validity and credibility. Embracing this opportunity can strengthen your capacity for discernment and enhance your ability to distinguish reliable information.

When submitting assessments on Canvas, you have to sign a declaration of originality that work you have submitted is your own. The University of Gibraltar has a zero tolerance policy for academic misconduct as per the University’s Quality Code C7 Academic Misconduct. As per the code:

“All students have a responsibility for maintaining their academic integrity by:

(a) understanding what constitutes good academic practice and what constitutes an academic offence, its seriousness and consequences;
(b) reviewing their work for errors in citation, attribution and/or accuracy;
(c) making an originality declaration on submitted work.”

The University defines academic misconduct as “any conduct by a student which may give that student an illegitimate or unfair advantage or benefit for themselves or another or which may create a disadvantage or loss for another.”

Unfair advantage is when:

• You present work produced by someone (or something) else and don’t reference or acknowledge it.

• You are not transparent about your approach to the assessment.

• You use resources you are not meant to use during an assessment or exam.

If teaching staff suspect that you are trying to pass off AI –generated work as your own, then the regulations in the University’s Quality Code C7 Academic Misconduct in respect to plagiarism of work (see Table 3, p18 of the University’s Quality Code C7 Academic Misconduct) will apply.

While utilising AI tools for tasks such as idea generation or planning can be deemed appropriate, it is crucial to consider both the context and nature of the assessment.  It is not permissible to solely rely on these tools to compose an entire essay, from start to finish. Additionally, it is important to be mindful that certain AI tools generate words and ideas that draw on the work of human authors without proper referencing. This practice is controversial and widely regarded as a form of plagiarism. It is advisable to consult your lecturers for specific guidance on which tools, if any, are permitted within the framework of your assignments. Nonetheless, the following principles typically apply universally to all assessments at the University of Gibraltar.

The University considers any written assignment that is overly reliant on quotation, and considered to be lacking in original content and thought, to be poor academic practice. This also applies to text generated by AI tools, which is otherwise referenced and quoted within your assignment. Poor academic practice can affect your grade negatively and you should ensure that your written work contains original thoughts, ideas and content which will allow your assessors to evaluate your knowledge, understanding and critical thinking in the subject area.

How to reference your use of AI tools in your work will vary depending on the tools used, and the way you have used them.  All new students have to undertake a mandatory ‘Citing and Referencing’ Academic Skills session in their first Semester.  The session includes various aspects of acknowledging the use of AI in assignments.

The following are practical examples of how you can acknowledge, describe and refer to the use of Generative AI.

Acknowledgement:

“I acknowledge the use of ChatGPT (https://chat.openai.com/) to plan my essay/report/assignment, and generate some initial ideas which I used in background research and self-study in the drafting of this assessment.”

Description of use of AI:

“I used ChatGPT to create a high level structure which I then adapted in my essay/report/assignment, choosing to focus on Bentham’s contribution to philosophy and to utilitarianism, and on the impact on human rights and civil liberties. I used one further ChatGPT prompt to generate some high level ideas about utilitarianism and civil liberties.”

In-text citing:

OpenAI (2023)
(OpenAI, 2023)

Reference:

Harvard style:

OpenAI (2023) ChatGPT-4. [Large language model]. Available at: https://openai.com/gpt-4 (Accessed: 21 August 2023).

APA style:

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT-4. [Large language model].  https://openai.com/gpt-4

More detailed guidance is available from the Parasol Library.  If you have a specific query not covered by the guidance, please ask the Parasol Librarian (Library@unigib.edu.gi).