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Analysis and Technology

Should schools ban ChatGPT or embrace the technology instead?

School districts and universities are banning the ChatGPT AI that writes in a human-like fashion, but some teachers say a better approach may be to incorporate it into the curriculum

By Jeremy Hsu

12 January 2023

Screen with ChatGPT chat with AI or artificial intelligence. Man search for information using artificial intelligence chatbot

ChatGPT is freely available for anyone to use online

Iryna Khabliuk/Alamy

Schools and educational institutions in the US and elsewhere are announcing bans on the recently released AI-powered chatbot ChatGPT out of fear that students could use the technology to complete their assignments. However, bans may be practically impossible given how difficult it is to detect when text is composed by ChatGPT. Is it instead time to rethink how students are taught and evaluated?

“Educators are starting to question what it means to… assess student learning if an AI can write an essay…

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