Clearly Communicate Expectations
In light of the growth of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), it is strongly recommended that each course identify a clear policy on GenAI use. Integrating this policy into your syllabus ensures students understand your expectations regarding GenAI tools like ChatGPT. eLDIG has prepared a few sample syllabus statements you can review and adapt based on your course objectives and needs.
Sample Syllabus Statements Based on Course Policy
Please consider the course policy related to Generative AI (GenAI) for your courses:
- GenAI is not PROHIBITED in this course
- GenAI is PERMITTED WITH CAREFUL CONSIDERATION at the course or assignment level (specific assignments)
- GenAI is PERMITTED at the course level (all assignments)
Citing GenAI
Be sure to clarify at the assignment or course level the expectations about citation. Here’s a sample statement related to citation that you could use in your course(s):
You must provide attribution for any AI-generated material that you quote, paraphrase, or incorporate into your own work. Please refer to these GenAI Citation Guidelines and Penn State’s Generative AI Library Guide for further guidance.
According to Faculty-Senate Policy G-9, “Academic Integrity, misrepresenting another’s words, results, processes, or ideas in whole or in part without giving appropriate attribution, citation, or credit is an academic integrity violation.” This includes submitting GenAI output as one’s own (e.g., plagiarism).
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) Course Policy – GenAI is Prohibited
The use of Generative AI (GenAI) is prohibited in this course for all assignments. This policy applies to the use of all GenAI tools, including but not limited to ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity, Quillbot, Penn State’s freely available version of Copilot, etc., and is reflective of the notion that your personal mastery of the course material is front and center. There will be times in your educational career where GenAI is allowed or even encouraged–it is an important collaborative tool that graduates will need for their careers. This is not one of those times, and if the instructor finds evidence of plagiarism of any kind, the appropriate punitive actions will be taken.
Please refer to the university policies regarding academic integrity in part 2 of the syllabus. This provides more in-depth details about university and college processes involving plagiarism and the Academic Integrity Violation Process, as well as the values outlined in the Smeal Honor Code.
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) Course Policy – GenAI Permitted at the Assignment Level
GenAI is permitted in this course on an assignment-level basis. Guidelines for how GenAI can be used will be provided in each individual assignment in the Canvas Assignment Dropboxes and Discussion Forums.
In this course, it is important that you have ownership of your work. This class aims to foster originality, integrity, and responsible scholarship through critical thinking, reflection, and engagement with ideas and course concepts–a crucial part of the intellectual struggle required in higher education. While AI and GenAI can be a great collaborator, it is your education. When writing and other work is fully generated through AI, it lacks the authentic intellectual effort required for genuine learning and growth. Even in assignments where AI is permitted, students must critically evaluate all content, especially if it is AI-generated.
Keep in mind that there are potential drawbacks of artificial intelligence, such as:
- Unreliable results and hallucinations.
- Limited contextual understanding.
- Privacy and intellectual property concerns.
When using GenAI, the importance of data quality and evidence-based ideas and experiences cannot be emphasized enough. The following guidelines should be used to ensure a successful semester:
- You are responsible for the work you submit for grading.
- You should follow all existing Academic Integrity Policies of the College and the University when using GenAI.
Sharing of copyrighted material with third-party GenAI tools is prohibited. Although faculty and instructors may not own the copyright to the facts or ideas within their discipline, we do own the copyright to their expression, explanation, and presentation of those facts and ideas in course lessons, PowerPoint slides, instructor-created videos, and other materials, including assessments constructed for the course. As such, those instructor-generated materials should never be uploaded to any third-party site (whether GenAI-oriented or not). Course materials are intended solely for enrolled members, and further distribution of these contents is expressly prohibited without explicit permission from the instructor and copyright owner.
Any work not cited will be considered a violation of academic integrity and the Smeal Honor Code. When there are no citations, and it is suspected that it could have been plagiarized from another source or generated by AI, the instructor may use a plagiarism detector to assess the level of plagiarized content on any work submitted.
Please refer to the university policies regarding academic integrity in Part 2 of the Syllabus. This provides more in-depth details about university and college processes involving plagiarism and the Academic Integrity Violation Process, as well as the values outlined in the Smeal Honor Code.
Additional Sample Statements that Can Be Used in Course Syllabi:
Students may not use generative AI tools to complete multiple-choice, matching, fill-in the blank, open-ended, or essay exam questions in this course.
Students may use generative AI tools for other assignments but must indicate which generative AI tool they’ve used and how they’ve used it. To do that, students must include an in-text citation directly after any sentence containing information that has been re-worded, paraphrased, copied, or created by a generative AI tool. Students must put copied text within quotation marks and must indicate when other media (e.g., images, graphics, etc.) has been copied or generated. Students must also list the AI tools they’ve used as a “Sourced Tool” at the end of the paper or project. This policy applies to the use of all generative AI tools, including Grammarly, Copilot, and other artificially intelligent tools provided by the university.