Playing Around with Generative AI
Description
Lots of us have been wondering how the emergence of generative AI tools will affect our teaching going forward. A first step in thinking through this question is trying out a generative AI program, such as ChatGPT. What can it do? What can it not do? How can you work with it to enhance what you do in the classroom? Join Professors Raed El-Jarrah and Christine Clark for a hands-on session to explore generative AI and reach your own conclusions about its affordances and constraints.
If you have any questions, or ideas for future programming on generative AI, email us at [email protected].
We will repeat this program early next semester for those who are unable to make it to this session.
Registration Details
Tuesday, December 5 @ 2:30 PM
109B Halle or Zoom
Chat GPT: Fall 2023 Discussion Series Expand dropdownFor the fall 2023 semester, WAC will offer a few opportunities for engaging in conversations around topics that we believe will be meaningful to many of you.
One of these opportunities will be offered through convening a small group of us to have conversations about generative AI, particularly in relation to teaching and assigning writing. This would be a WAC think tank of sorts -- and opportunity for those of us interested in the topic to come together, read and discuss some things, etc. These conversations will occur during the following session time and dates in Halle 109B and on Zoom:
October 24th at 2:30 PMNovember 14th at 2:30 PMAs always, if you have any questions, please reach out to Ann ([email protected]). We hope you'll join us for one of these opportunities this fall!
ChatGPT: New Semester, New Challenges Expand dropdownOur world of higher education was recently rocked by the emergence of ChatGPT, an AI chatbot capable of producing serviceable and, in some cases, quite good papers in response to prompts. This raises questions about the implications this technology may have on how we teach and assign writing. If students are able to take our paper prompts, feed them into this software, and get papers indistinguishable from actual student work, this clearly presents us with challenges and calls for us to rethink elements of how we teach, and how we design our assignments.
Ann Blakeslee and Beth Sabo from the Writing Across the Curriculum program and the University Writing Center and Jeff Bernstein from the Faculty Development Center hosted two ChatGPT sessions during the summer of 2023. These sessions took place before the fall 2023 semester begins and offered instructors resources to take with them into the start of the year, including syllabus statements, classroom policies, and assignments.
ChatGPT: The Hype and The Reality Expand dropdownOur world of higher education was recently impacted by the emergence of ChatGPT, an AI chatbot capable of producing serviceable and, in some cases, quite good papers in response to prompts. For example, if, as the FDC Director did, one were to type into ChatGPT "Write a love letter to my wife, Lisa," ChatGPT can produce a very serviceable love letter that almost fooled the aforementioned Lisa. (Note: this was done for experimental purposes. Trying this at home may have unintended consequences!)
On a more serious note, though, this raises questions about the implications this technology may have on how we teach and assign writing. If students are able to take our paper prompts, feed them into this software, and get papers indistinguishable from actual student work, this clearly presents us with challenges and may call for us to rethink elements of how we teach.
Read the blog post from Michael McVey about ChatGPT.
Much discussion has ensued about ChatGPT as evidenced by a recent New York Times story, and many other stories about this in Inside Higher Ed, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and other such publications, including the blog post linked above. But how much does or will this change our teaching landscape? How should we approach and think about the assignments we give? Put another way, to what extent do the good teaching practices we've all strived to put into effect address the capabilities of and challenges ChatGPT presents?
Ann Blakeslee from the Writing Across the Curriculum program and the Writing Center and Jeff Bernstein from the Faculty Development Center hosted an informal discussion on Monday, January 30, 2023, about what ChatGPT is, what it does, and how it can, might, and should affect our teaching practices–and our thinking about teaching. Please join Ann and Jeff as they continue the conversation with another ChatGPT event, "More Good Chat about ChatGPT."
More Good Chat About ChatGPT
ChatGPT continues to attract a great deal of attention in the world of higher education. Ann Blakeslee and Jeff Bernstein in this conversation, discussed how we can use ChatGPT in our classes and how it can lead us to revisit principles of good practice in creating assignments for our students. Ann and Jeff helped frame the issues, and heard from all of YOU on how we can all adapt pedagogically to this new development.