By Ghadeer Ghloum
KUWAIT: Cheating at schools and colleges has become easier than ever through ChatGPT, the newest tool developed by Open AI. Although the bot can be useful for students and teachers, it is also a potential source of trouble in the educational field. With easy and free access to ChatGPT, students can quickly find answers to their homework and exam questions, write research papers and fulfill other school requirements. This affects students at different levels as it brings down their motivation to put personal effort in their work and discourages critical and analytical thinking skills.
Teachers at different grade levels already have concerns about students' unethical use of the bot. "With ChatGPT, it will just do everything for them. It is going to make children lazier. It is going to mean that children are not as able to answer questions and investigate things, and that is the same thing in home and class requirements," Emma, an elementary teacher at a private school told Kuwait Times.
Cheating through ChatGPT hinders students' personal development and independence. Regardless of how little students have absorbed from the learning material, they are still able to complete their work by relying on the conclusions that artificial intelligence provides. "If the majority is using this tool, I will not be able to distinguish between gifted students and those who need more help, which is unfair. Moreover, this might affect the trust between teachers and students. As a teacher myself, I would not be able to trust the Sarah Khaled said.
ChatGPT's downsides can go beyond the circle of academics and approach the relationship between teachers and students. According to another high school teacher, Ghadeer Ghafour, the bot can make it even harder for teachers to do their part at work. Students may find attendance at school unnecessary and boring due to having easy access to all the answers, which eliminates the need to put any effort into researching and memorizing.
"Students will no longer concentrate in the classroom and will rely heavily on ChatGPT during their exam," said Ghafour. She also worries about the lack of interaction between teachers and students which creates a gap between them and causes students to lose interest in education.