On November 30, 2022, ChatGPT (an artificial intelligence chatbot developed by OpenAI that provides human-like responses) was unveiled to the world. It uniquely combined conversational abilities with extensive knowledge – supported by large language models trained on massive data sets. ChatGPT marked a shift in AI (artificial intelligence). As AI-generated writing expands in academia, recommendations have emerged urging communication with students, cautious deployment of detection tools, judicious ChatGPT integration, emphasis on digital literacy and campus conversations addressing appropriate AI authorship uses (McMurtrie, 2023). Rather than coexisting with it, educators should actively consider integrating aspects of this innovation into their pedagogical toolkits. Mollick, et al., recommend starting small. An activity such as generating and critiquing AI-written essays. Comparing several AI programs and their completion of similar tasks. Use it as a study buddy by having it generate practice questions. It allows self-assessment without providing answers directly (2024).

An outgrowth of AI is the development of Bots (short for robots, a software program designed to perform repetitive tasks and simulate human behaviors). Community colleges are significantly impacted by increasingly sophisticated Bots depriving real students of seats, skewing key participation metrics used for research, and overloading class registration systems – the issue extends across higher education. Recent reports have uncovered Bot accounts and activity at 4-year colleges and even elite universities. A 2022 investigative study identified over 200 likely Bot accounts at a large state university that logged into the learning management system for prolonged periods without clear human activity behind the sessions (Thompson, 2022).

Along with commandeering seats in classes and programs, Bots on university and college campuses can compromise research data sets and analyses that utilize real student data. They also allow generation of fraudulent documents like fake transcripts, diplomas and letters of enrollment—damaging academic credibility. While community colleges contend with significant impacts regarding access and overburdened resources, mainstream four-year institutions also face threats from increasingly advanced student impersonation Bots.

Potential Solutions:

Multilayered detection/prevention methods are key to combat sophisticated attacks on registration systems and learning platforms. It’s critical that colleges/universities protect themselves from automated accounts. Steps include:

• CAPTCHAs at enrollment and decision points. They remain the most effective first line of defense.
• Rigorous identity verification upfront using IDs, interviews, etc. This is vital before Bots/fakes gain access.
• Image quizzes leveraging visual recognition difficulties for Bots.
• Opinion-based exams challenging Bots to produce credible human viewpoints.
• Canvas online tracking to identify abnormal activity patterns.
• Broader monitoring for signs of automation like data speeds or login frequencies.
• Analyses of written content looking for AI-generated text patterns. May be less reliable but can complement other efforts.

Key Limitations and Downsides:

• More rigorous identity verification steps like government IDs or video interviews may disproportionately barrier students with limited documentation.
• CAPTCHAs risk impairing accessibility for students with disabilities.
• Restrictive Canvas activity tracking or text analysis raise concerns over student privacy, academic freedom or institutional bias in detection algorithms.
• Even small false positive rates could see genuine students blocked from classes.
• Resource burdens implementing multifaceted approaches at scale.
• Academics may face difficult tradeoffs balancing integrity safeguards against detrimental impacts on student inclusion, rights, equitable access to education—or time taken from teaching and research duties.
• Institutions must seek to enhance integrity through prevention suited to their contexts while minimizing any unintended exclusions or inequities.

Summary:

Bots posing as students to fraudulently enroll and obtain aid are a rapidly growing problem, overburdening faculty/administration. Recent reports show millions of dollars in potential aid misallocation. Multifaceted prevention is urgently required, combining robust access controls with ongoing detection reviews to devote resources to assisting real students, not increasingly advanced Bots intent on deception.

References:

Note: This article was the result of a collaboration between the human author and an AI program, Claude https://claude.ai/

Courteny, T. (2023, October 13). Why Ai doesn’t worry me…in the classroom, and why it does. California Teachers Association. https://www.cta.org/educator/posts/why-ai-doesnt-worry-me-in-the-classroom-and-why-it-does

Hall, E., Zinshtevn, M., West, C., & Regan, M. (2021, September 2). That student in your community college class could be a bot. LAist. https://laist.com/news/education/that-student-in-your-community-college-class-could-be-a-bot

McMurtrie , B. (2023, March 6). CHATGPT is already upending campus practices. colleges are rushing … The Chronicle of Higher Education,. https://www.chronicle.com/article/chatgpt-is-already-upending-campus-practices-colleges-are-rushing-to-respond

Mollick , E., Mollick , L., Acar, O., & Weiss, M. (Eds.). (2024, January 17). 4 Simple Ways to Integrate AI into Your Class. Harvard Business Publishing Education. https://hbsp.harvard.edu/inspiring-minds/4-simple-ways-to-integrate-ai-into-your-class/?icid=top_nav

Tripp, R. (2023). Robots, fakers, and ghosts. FACCCTS. https://www.faccc.org/assets/docs/FACCCTS/Spring2023/Robots,%20Fakers,%20and%20Ghosts%20RT.pdf

Tytunovich, G. (2023, October 5). Council post: How higher education became the target of bots, fake accounts and online fraud. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2023/01/20/how-higher-education-became-the-target-of-bots-fake-accounts-and-online-fraud/?sh=367e334a1f62