RCS students engage in classes that teach them to develop their critical thinking and creative skills. Students, analyze, interpret, and evaluate ideas and information. As such, we value teaching our students the skills necessary to express their thinking and creativity.

Recent developments in artificial intelligence (AI), have made platforms available to students, which may be applied in the academic setting. ChatGPT is one such AI program that has the capacity to produce sophisticated emails and essays, poetry, responses to questions, or generate lines of code based on a user prompt.

This new development will require that teachers adjust their instructional approaches to ensure that students use these new tools appropriately in support of their academic work or during classroom activities. In each course, students and teachers will discuss how to produce original work and recognize where they rely on ideas from other authors. RCS focusses on developing in its students, the mindset and skillset necessary to thrive in a post-secondary environment and beyond. Therefore, it is essential that a developed appreciation of academic integrity considerations, such as proper use and referencing of sources, is integrated throughout our courses and our curriculum.

Academic institutions carefully define plagiarism for all students. RCS’ High School Handbook defines plagiarism as “intentionally or unintentionally using another person’s words or ideas and presenting these as one’s own. It includes submitting an essay written by another student, allowing a student to submit your work, obtaining one of the many services provided on the Internet or copying sections from various documents and not acknowledging the original source.” Cheating is defined “as any attempt to give or obtain unauthorized assistance in a formal academic exercise.”

These policies preserve academic integrity and motivate students to commit to the thoughtful development and communication of their own ideas. Students who grapple with real-world problems consolidate their learning and reach new understandings that they can apply to future studies.

AI, such as ChatGPT, can construct thoughtful responses to questions or tasks set by the user. However, the student still needs to produce their own responses and demonstrate their unique understandings. When using an AI response verbatim or paraphrasing its ideas, students rely on a concept created by another source. As such, they would at a minimum be required to reference this material as they would with any other source.

AI technology provides numerous opportunities for enhancing education. RCS recognizes that AI is a powerful tool that students need to use appropriately. As we learn more about the application of such tools and engage in professional development relating to the use of AI in our classrooms, we will discover ways in which it can be employed as an aid to amplify student learning within the confines of academic ethics.

Developments in AI technology are occurring at a fast pace. RCS will review this policy as needed to ensure it supports best educational practices.

Artificial Intelligence Use Procedure

Teacher Responsibilities

• Inform students if they are permitted to use AI software to conduct research. Since students cannot link back to ChatGPT, they must cite the prompt they used to generate the research and the search engine used.

• Inform students that research, arguments, and wording used for assignments must be theirs. Teach students the definitions of cheating and plagiarism.

• Construct assignments that involve process and which are not susceptible to cheating using the results of AI. For example, having students complete assignments where process is marked or where tests are completed in class is desirable.

• Use AI detectors such as turnitin as a measure to detect cheating. Student Responsibilities

• Students must ask questions to ensure their understanding of cheating and plagiarism policies and guidelines

• Cite the use of ChatGPT if they are permitted to use this in research. Students must cite the AI source and line prompt.

• Students must not use AI engines to generate work if instructed not to by the teacher

• Students must never present the work of an AI engine/program as their own

  Penalties for Cheating/Plagiarism using AI

Teachers who suspect cheating using ChatGPT may have the student rewrite the assignment on paper in front of the teacher for grade at their discretion. Rewritten assignments may not be completed electronically. Repeat offenses may lead to suspension and/or expulsion.

Citations:

1. (2023) Personal Communication: Dr. Terry McAdams. Branksome Hall Asia.

2. McAdams, T. ChatGPT and Academic Honesty. Branksome Hall Asia (Feb, 2023).

3. Pickering College. Artificial Intelligence Academic Integrity Policy. (March, 2023).