AI plagiarism detection ‘will not work’ in education, experts warn Government

The panel acknowledged fears around AI and plagiarism, which remains an issue both at second and third level.

Methods to detect artificial technology (AI) used by students for plagiarism in education “do not and will not work” according to expert advice provided to the Government.

The details are included in a paper by the AI Advisory Council which was tasked with providing expert guidance, advice, and recommendations on emerging issues in artificial intelligence.

The guidance comes at a time when teachers have raised serious concerns about the impact of AI and Leaving Cert reforms, and universities work to rethink assessments in light of rapid advancements in generative AI.

The panel noted that generative AI has enormous potential to "enhance" education, for example through assisting with creating lesson plans, customised explanations of complex topics, feedback or accessibility support.

“These examples show how to empower and not replace educators to enable them to work alongside AI systems,” it noted.

Generative AI, especially where it intersects with education is currently “developing at an unprecedented rate that none of us can easily be comfortable with, and some are more uncomfortable than others”, the expert panel also noted.

“This includes both educators and students and should prompt the teaching professions at all levels to do some difficult but important reassessment of their roles in order to appropriately leverage these new technologies, for the benefit of students and the integrity of the teaching-learning process.” 

There is a "full spectrum" of addressing AI in education at primary, second and at third levels, it noted, "from banning it completely to implementing innovative use cases, sometimes within earshot of each other."

However, the panel also noted that it felt it important to highlight how this technology cannot be stopped.

“The pace of development is outside our control but the ability to manage them appropriately in our educational institutions is within our control and there is no guarantee that technologies like generative AI will sustain and remain with us over the long term.” 

It also acknowledged fears around AI and plagiarism, which remains an issue both at second and third level.

“Because generative AI tools are easily accessible this could encourage or lead some students to ‘cheat’ at assignments either deliberately or inadvertently and dampen what would be genuine knowledge acquisition,” it noted.

“Indeed, much of the narrative around generative AI since its increased popularity has been around plagiarism detection.”

“It is now clear that detection methods do not and will not work so integrating AI into teaching should be about using it constructively and developing broader critical thinking around the capabilities and limitations, and shortfalls amongst students.” 

 “For example, in areas of study where factuality and accuracy are critical (say History), the use of generative AI would require a great level of caution and output verification compared to areas of study where factuality matters less (for example, creative writing).” 

In its advice, the panel recommended the Government to create and publish guidelines for the use of AI in education which remain “live documents” that can quickly be updated as AI evolves.

It also recommended for the development of AI literacy training for educators across all levels that should “ focus on equipping teachers with fundamental AI knowledge”.

The panel also recommended for it to establish a system to ensure equitable access to AI tools in education, as well as facilitate a “national conversation” between teachers, parents, students, and unions as well as other representatives once the guidelines are published.