Schools have been told that some coursework contributing to assessment should be done “in class under direct supervision” to address concerns over the misuse of artificial intelligence (AI), in new exam board guidance.
The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) has also said that schools should make students aware of the “risk” of the use of AI to complete coursework, warning that misuse is likely to be considered malpractice.
Schools should also consider restricting access to online AI tools on centre devices and networks, the JCQ has said.
In guidance published for schools today, the JCQ set out instruction for identifying, reporting and investigating student misuse of AI in coursework and other non-examined and internal assessments.
The guidance also set out that where teachers “have doubts about the authenticity of student work submitted for assessment”, such as the unattributed use of AI, “they must investigate and take appropriate action”.
It comes after the exams regulator chief said earlier this month that headteachers should consider having students undertake coursework under exam conditions to safeguard against the rise in the use of AI technology, such as ChatGPT.
The JCQ also said today that the misuse of AI tools in relation to qualification assessments at any time constitutes malpractice and warned that these tools could produce “inaccurate or inappropriate content”.
The JCQ warned that examples of AI misuse include copying or paraphrasing sections of AI-generated content so that the work is no longer the student’s own or using whole responses of AI-generated content.
Students will also be guilty of AI misuse if they fail to acknowledge the use of AI tools when they have been used as a source of information.
However, the JCQ said that AI tools can be used, but only when the conditions of the assessment permit the use of the internet and “where the student is able to demonstrate that the final submission is the product of their own independent work and independent thinking”.
Students will also have to verify sources cited by the tool and reference the use of the tool.
The guidance adds that “where students use AI, they must acknowledge its use and show clearly how they have used it” to allow teachers and assessors to “review how AI has been used and whether that use was appropriate in the context of the particular assessment”.
Exam centres have also been advised to update malpractice and plagiarism policies to acknowledge the use of AI.
