Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing education while making discovering more accessible however likewise stimulating disputes on its effect.

While trainees hail AI tools like ChatGPT for boosting their knowing experience, speakers are raising issues about the growing dependence on AI, which they argue fosters laziness and undermines scholastic stability, library.kemu.ac.ke particularly with numerous students unable to defend their tasks or provided works.

Prof. Isaac Nwaogwugwu, a lecturer at the University of Lagos, in an interview with Nairametrics, expressed aggravation over the growing dependence on AI-generated responses among trainees stating a current experience he had.

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"I offered a project to my MBA students, and out of over 100 trainees, about 40% submitted the precise same answers. These trainees did not even understand each other, but they all used the very same AI tool to generate their responses," he stated.

He noted that this pattern prevails among both undergraduate and postgraduate trainees but is especially concerning in part-time and distance knowing programs.

"AI is a serious challenge when it comes to tasks. Many trainees no longer believe critically-they simply go online, generate responses, and send," he added.

Surprisingly, some speakers are also accused of over-relying on AI, setting a cycle where both teachers and students turn to AI for convenience instead of intellectual rigor.

This argument raises crucial questions about the function of AI in academic stability and trainee development.

According to a UNESCO report, while ChatGPT reached 100 million regular monthly active users in January 2023, just one country had released policies on generative AI as of July 2023.

As of December 2024, ChatGPT had over 300 million people using the AI chatbot each week and 1 billion messages sent every day worldwide.

Decline of scholastic rigor

University speakers are increasingly concerned about students sending AI-generated assignments without really comprehending the content.

Dr. Felix Echekoba, a lecturer at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, revealed his issues to Nairametrics about students progressively depending on ChatGPT, only to fight with responding to fundamental concerns when evaluated.

"Many students copy from ChatGPT and send polished tasks, however when asked basic questions, they go blank. It's frustrating because education has to do with discovering, not just passing courses," he said.

- Prof. Nwaogwugwu explained that the increasing variety of first-class graduates can not be entirely credited to AI but confessed that even high-performing students utilize these tools.
"A top-notch trainee is a first-rate trainee, AI or not, but that does not suggest they don't cheat. The benefits of AI may be peripheral, but it is making students reliant and less analytical," he stated.

- Another lecturer, Dr. Ereke, from Ebonyi State University, raised a different concern that some lecturers themselves are guilty of the same practice.
"It's not simply students utilizing AI lazily. Some speakers, out of their own laziness, produce lesson notes, course lays out, marking schemes, and even examination questions with AI without evaluating them. Students in turn use AI to generate answers. It's a cycle of laziness and it is eliminating genuine knowing," he regreted.

Students' perspectives on use

Students, on the other hand, state AI has improved their knowing experience by making scholastic materials more reasonable and available.

- Eniola Arowosafe, a 300-level Business Administration student at Unilag, shared how AI has actually significantly helped her learning by breaking down complex terms and supplying summaries of prolonged texts.
"AI helped me understand things more easily, particularly when handling intricate topics," she described.

However, she recalled an instance when she used AI to submit her task, just for her lecturer to instantly recognize that it was created by ChatGPT and decline it. Eniola kept in mind that it was a good-bad impact.

- Bryan Okwuba, who recently finished with a top-notch degree in Pharmacy Technology from the University of Lagos, strongly believes that his scholastic success wasn't due to any AI tool. He attributes his impressive grades to actively interesting by asking concerns and focusing on locations that speakers emphasize in class, as they are typically shown in exam concerns.
"It's everything about being present, taking note, and taking advantage of the wealth of understanding shared by my coworkers," he said,

- Tunde Awoshita, machinform.com a final-year marketing student at UNIZIK, admits to sometimes copying directly from ChatGPT when facing numerous deadlines.
"To be truthful, there are times I copy straight from ChatGPT when I have multiple deadlines, and I know I'm guilty of that, the majority of times the speakers do not get to review them, however AI has actually also helped me discover quicker."

Balancing AI's function in education

Experts believe the service lies in AI literacy; teaching students and speakers how to utilize AI as a knowing help rather than a shortcut.

- Minister of Education, asteroidsathome.net Dr. Tunji Alausa, highlighted the integration of AI into Nigeria's education system, worrying the value of a well balanced approach that keeps human participation while utilizing AI to enhance discovering outcomes.
"As we browse the rapidly developing landscape of Expert system (AI), it is important that we prioritise human firm in education. We need to ensure that AI boosts, instead of changes, teachers' vital role in shaping young minds," he said

Concerns over AI in Learning

Dorcas Akintade, a cybersecurity change expert, resolved growing concerns relating to using synthetic intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT and their potential risks to the academic system.

- She acknowledged the advantages of AI, nevertheless, highlighted the need for caution in its usage.
- Akintade highlighted the increasing resistance amongst educators and schools toward incorporating AI tools in learning environments. She identified 2 main reasons why AI tools are dissuaded in instructional settings: security dangers and plagiarism. She described that AI tools like ChatGPT are trained to respond based upon user interactions, which may not align with the expectations of teachers.
"It is not looking at it as a tutor," Akintade said, describing that AI does not deal with particular mentor methods.

Plagiarism is another problem, as AI pulls from existing data, frequently without correct attribution

"A lot of individuals require to comprehend, like I said, this is information that has been trained on. It is not just bringing things out from the sky. It's bringing details that some other people are fed into it, which in essence means that is another person's paperwork," she warned.

- Additionally, Akintade highlighted an early concern in AI development understood as "hallucination," where AI tools would produce details that was not accurate.
"Hallucination indicated that it was bringing out information from the air. If ChatGPT might not get that details from you, it was going to make one up," she explained.

She recommended "grounding" AI by supplying it with specific details to avoid such errors.

Navigating AI in Education

Akintade argued that prohibiting AI tools outright is not the solution, especially when AI presents a chance to leapfrog conventional educational techniques.

- She thinks that consistently strengthening crucial information helps people keep in mind and prevent making mistakes when faced with challenges.
"Immersion brings conversion. When you inform individuals the exact same thing over and over once again, when they are about to make the mistakes, then they'll remember."

She likewise empasized the requirement for clear policies and procedures within schools, noting that many schools need to resolve the individuals and process aspects of this use.

- Prof. Nwaogwugwu has turned to in-class assignments and tests to counter AI-driven scholastic dishonesty.
"Now, I primarily use tasks to ensure students provide original work." However, he acknowledged that large classes makes this method challenging.

"If you set complicated concerns, students will not be able to use AI to get direct responses," he discussed.

He emphasized the requirement for universities to train speakers on crafting test concerns that AI can not quickly solve while acknowledging that some lecturers battle to counter AI misuse due to a lack of technological awareness. "Some lecturers are analogue," he stated.

- Nigeria launched a draft National AI Strategy in August 2024, wiki.lafabriquedelalogistique.fr concentrating on ethical AI advancement with fairness, transparency, responsibility, and privacy at its core.
- UNESCO in a report requires the policy of AI in education, recommending organizations to examine algorithms, data, and outputs of generative AI tools to ensure they meet ethical requirements, safeguard user information, and filter inappropriate content.
- It worries the requirement to evaluate the long-term impact of AI on important abilities like believing and imagination while developing policies that align with ethical structures. Additionally, UNESCO recommends executing age restrictions for GenAI usage to protect more youthful students and secure vulnerable groups.
- For federal governments, it recommended embracing a collaborated nationwide method to regulating GenAI, consisting of developing oversight bodies and lining up guidelines with existing information protection and personal privacy laws. It stresses examining AI risks, enforcing stricter guidelines for high-risk applications, and making sure nationwide data ownership.