Some faculty have had questions about whether the CSU Student Conduct Code applies to work that was created by artificial intelligence. Below is some information Mike Katz, Director of the Student Resolution Center, and I believe will be useful.
Is work (essays, responses, code, images) created by an artificial intelligence engine still covered by our Student Conduct Code’s language?
Yes. Definitively. The Student Conduct Code was written to address behavior, not technologies. In addition, work submitted for credit that was created by AI-engines can be addressed using multiple areas of the Academic Misconduct section of the Student Conduct Code.
Is it plagiarism? What about cheating?
Yes and yes. The language of the Student Conduct Code that deals with plagiarism prohibits “the copying of language, structure, images, ideas, or thoughts of another, and representing them as one’s own without proper acknowledgement…” [emphasis added].
You can see that the Code applies in two major areas here:
- The work was not created by the student.
- The work was submitted as a representation of one’s own work without proper acknowledgement that it was created by another.
As for cheating, the Code would apply to using AI-generated work because it would include “receiving unauthorized assistance on any form of academic work or engaging in any behavior specifically prohibited by the instructor in the course syllabus…” [emphasis added].
If you have questions about how the Student Conduct Code applies to a situation, you can contact Mike Katz at 970-491-7165. As always, if you have questions about academic integrity, feel free to call Joseph Brown at 970-491-2898.
