The educational impacts of ChatGPT

By Ian Chan

Photo by Anna Shvets (Courtesy of Pixabay)

In November 2022, the company OpenAI unveiled its newest product, a highly complex chatbot capable of giving human-like responses to questions given by the user. However, its complex artificial intelligence is challenging the current state of the educational system.

So what exactly is ChatGPT? And why is it causing controversy in the educational scene?

ChatGPT, created by OpenAI, the company behind the famous art-generating bot DALL-E, has recently opened to the public. Users can input questions or prompts, and ChatGPT will then respond with a human-like response. This revolutionary technology marks a critical turning point in how users interact with the web and artificial intelligence. But why is ChatGPT considered a massive challenger to our traditional educational system?

ChatGPT was initially conceived to create a user-friendly intelligent chatbot with remarkable conversational abilities. The AI is a culmination of multiple previous versions of a technology called “Generative Pre-Trained Transformer”, or GPT for short. This technology parses user input through vast databanks to concisely and generally generate a response. However, current versions of ChatGPT are limited to information before 2022, which may cause outdated or inaccurate information. 

But what exactly is ChatGPT capable of? ChatGPT, in its creation, was fed a vast assortment of information along with examples of various chatlogs to determine the best way to deliver information, in the most human way possible. Many misunderstand that ChatGPT is used mainly for gathering and simply summarising information, but while this is one of its most important functions, it isn’t its only ability. ChatGPT can be used in many ways, some of which is why global educational systems are taking serious precautions against the chatbot. Examples include:

  • Create original jokes

  • Create a resume/CV

  • Create content in multiple languages

  • Solve complex questions with detailed explanations regarding how to solve them

  • Explain complex topics with simple explanations 

  • Create lyrics for music of any genre

  • Write essays on any topic given to the chatbot

  • Along with a variety of other functions

Photo of ChatGPT UI generating a script about mortgage rates, courtesy of Kapwing: https://www.kapwing.com/resources/how-to-use-chatgpt-to-write-a-video-script/

However, the main point of controversy and contention is the AI’s capability to create complex essays on virtually any topic. In an experiment with Wall Street Journal, journalist Joanna Stern used ChatGPT to create an 800-word essay regarding the themes and the portrayal of existentialism in the film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”, with references to the book “The Metamorphosis”. The essay was submitted to an AP English Literature class and received a passing grade of around B- to C. Others on social media have also praised ChatGPT’s remarkable writing capabilities, with a user with the name of “Cory Wong” stating that ChatGPT was capable of writing a detailed 4 paragraph essay on the contrasting nationalistic views of Benedict Anderson and Ernest Gellner with the proficiency of an A- grade for a college freshman. But most controversially, they bypass plagiarism-checking websites like Turnitin, Grammarly, and Google Classroom. In response, Turnitin has been developing a new AI-detecting algorithm.

Due to this, schools worldwide have held meetings concerning ChatGPT, with some schools outright prohibiting it due to the difficulty of differentiating between student-written and AI-written texts. New York public schools, the French university SciencesPo, and a university in Bengaluru have already banned the usage of ChatGPT in their institutions. However, most schools remain divided on this issue, as some have actively opposed bans and have instead asked schools to teach alongside the chatbot and get comfortable with the increasing prevalence of artificial intelligence. 

Although AI detectors exist and are already used to catch cheating, the constant innovation and improvement around artificial intelligence have raised serious concerns. Chirag Shah, a professor in the Information School at the University of Washington, states: “It becomes a cat-and-mouse game, there is a question of how effective your detection techniques can get compared to these AI chatbots that are constantly learning and being improved to avoid detection.”

Conversely, others have argued that ChatGPT prepares them for the eventual future, where artificial intelligence becomes a regular part of life. Ethan Mollick, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, stated: “Large language models aren’t going to get less capable in the next few years, we need to figure out a way to adjust to these tools, and not just ban them.”

The IB Educational System has yet to reveal its verdict on AI technology.

Science & TechnologyRenaissance College