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Expert System (AI) is changing education while making discovering more accessible but also triggering arguments on its effect.

While students hail AI tools like ChatGPT for improving their knowing experience, lecturers are raising concerns about the growing reliance on AI, which they argue fosters laziness and undermines scholastic stability, particularly with lots of students unable to protect their tasks or offered works.

Prof. Isaac Nwaogwugwu, a lecturer at the University of Lagos, in an interview with Nairametrics, expressed aggravation over the on AI-generated actions among trainees recounting a recent experience he had.

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"I gave a task to my MBA trainees, and out of over 100 students, about 40% sent the precise same answers. These trainees did not even understand each other, but they all used the exact same AI tool to generate their reactions," he stated.

He kept in mind that this pattern is prevalent among both undergraduate and postgraduate trainees however is specifically worrying in part-time and distance learning programs.

"AI is a severe difficulty when it pertains to assignments. Many trainees no longer believe critically-they just browse the web, generate answers, and submit," he added.

Surprisingly, some lecturers are likewise accused of over-relying on AI, setting a cycle where both educators and trainees turn to AI for benefit rather than intellectual rigor.

This debate raises critical concerns about the role of AI in academic integrity and student development.

According to a UNESCO report, while ChatGPT reached 100 million month-to-month active users in January 2023, just one nation had released guidelines on generative AI as of July 2023.

As of December 2024, ChatGPT had more than 300 million individuals using the AI chatbot every week and 1 billion messages sent out every day all over the world.

Decline of scholastic rigor

University speakers are increasingly worried about trainees submitting AI-generated projects without truly understanding the content.

Dr. Felix Echekoba, a lecturer at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, expressed his issues to Nairametrics about trainees significantly relying on ChatGPT, only to have problem with responding to basic questions when evaluated.

"Many students copy from ChatGPT and submit polished assignments, but when asked fundamental concerns, they go blank. It's frustrating because education is about discovering, not just passing courses," he stated.

- Prof. Nwaogwugwu mentioned that the increasing variety of superior graduates can not be completely credited to AI however admitted that even high-performing trainees utilize these tools.
"A top-notch trainee is a top-notch student, AI or not, however that doesn't mean they don't cheat. The advantages of AI may be peripheral, but it is making trainees dependent and less analytical," he stated.

- Another lecturer, Dr. Ereke, from Ebonyi State University, raised a various issue that some speakers themselves are guilty of the same practice.
"It's not simply students using AI slackly. Some speakers, out of their own laziness, create lesson notes, course describes, marking schemes, and even exam questions with AI without reviewing them. Students in turn utilize AI to create responses. It's a cycle of laziness and it is eliminating genuine learning," he lamented.

Students' perspectives on usage

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

- Eniola Arowosafe, a 300-level Business Administration trainee at Unilag, shared how AI has actually significantly aided her knowing by breaking down complex terms and offering summaries of prolonged texts.
"AI helped me understand things more quickly, especially when dealing with complex subjects," she explained.

However, she recalled an instance when she utilized AI to send her task, only for her lecturer to immediately acknowledge that it was created by ChatGPT and reject it. Eniola kept in mind that it was a good-bad effect.

- Bryan Okwuba, who recently finished with a first-class degree in Pharmacy Technology from the University of Lagos, strongly thinks that his academic success wasn't due to any AI tool. He associates his outstanding grades to actively interesting by asking concerns and focusing on locations that lecturers highlight in class, as they are frequently reflected in test questions.
"It's all about existing, focusing, and tapping into the wealth of understanding shared by my associates," he stated,

- Tunde Awoshita, a final-year marketing student at UNIZIK, orcz.com admits to occasionally copying directly from ChatGPT when dealing with several deadlines.
"To be truthful, there are times I copy directly from ChatGPT when I have multiple deadlines, and I understand I'm guilty of that, the majority of times the speakers do not get to check out them, however AI has also helped me find out quicker."

Balancing AI's function in education

Experts believe the solution depends on AI literacy; mentor trainees and speakers how to use AI as a knowing aid rather than a faster way.

- Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, highlighted the integration of AI into Nigeria's education system, stressing the significance of a well balanced technique that keeps human involvement while harnessing AI to enhance learning outcomes.
"As we browse the rapidly developing landscape of Expert system (AI), it is vital that we prioritise human firm in education. We must guarantee that AI boosts, rather than changes, teachers' important role in shaping young minds," he said

Concerns over AI in Learning

Dorcas Akintade, a cybersecurity change specialist, attended to growing issues relating to making use of expert system (AI) tools such as ChatGPT and their prospective dangers to the instructional system.

- She acknowledged the advantages of AI, however, stressed the need for caution in its usage.
- Akintade highlighted the increasing resistance among educators and schools toward integrating AI tools in finding out environments. She identified 2 primary reasons AI tools are prevented in instructional settings: security threats and plagiarism. She described that AI tools like ChatGPT are trained to react based on user interactions, which might not align with the expectations of educators.
"It is not looking at it as a tutor," Akintade stated, explaining that AI does not deal with specific teaching approaches.

Plagiarism is another issue, as AI pulls from existing data, frequently without proper attribution

"A lot of people require to comprehend, like I stated, this is data that has been trained on. It is not simply 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 individual's paperwork," she warned.

- Additionally, Akintade highlighted an early issue in AI advancement referred to as "hallucination," where AI tools would create info that was not factual.
"Hallucination meant that it was bringing out information from the air. If ChatGPT could not get that details from you, it was going to make one up," she explained.

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

Navigating AI in Education

Akintade argued that banning AI tools outright is not the service, particularly when AI provides a chance to leapfrog standard instructional approaches.

- She believes that consistently enhancing crucial info assists individuals keep in mind and drapia.org avoid making mistakes when confronted with challenges.
"Immersion brings conversion. When you tell people the same thing over and over once again, when they will make the errors, then they'll remember."

She also empasized the need for clear policies and treatments within schools, noting that numerous schools need to resolve individuals and procedure elements of this usage.

- Prof. Nwaogwugwu has actually turned to in-class assignments and tests to counter AI-driven scholastic dishonesty.
"Now, I primarily use projects to ensure students offer initial work." However, he acknowledged that managing large classes makes this approach difficult.

"If you set complex concerns, trainees won't be able to utilize AI to get direct answers," he discussed.

He stressed the requirement for universities to train lecturers on crafting exam questions that AI can not quickly fix while acknowledging that some lecturers battle to counter AI misuse due to a lack of technological awareness. "Some lecturers are analogue," he said.

- Nigeria launched a draft National AI Strategy in August 2024, concentrating on ethical AI development with fairness, openness, accountability, and personal privacy at its core.
- UNESCO in a report calls for the guideline of AI in education, encouraging organizations to audit algorithms, information, and outputs of generative AI tools to guarantee they satisfy ethical requirements, secure user information, and filter improper content.
- It worries the need to evaluate the long-lasting effect of AI on crucial skills like thinking and imagination while producing policies that line up with ethical frameworks. Additionally, UNESCO suggests implementing age constraints for GenAI use to safeguard more youthful students and protect susceptible groups.
- For governments, it encouraged embracing a collaborated nationwide technique to controling GenAI, including developing oversight bodies and lining up regulations with existing data defense and privacy laws. It stresses examining AI threats, implementing stricter guidelines for high-risk applications, and making sure national information ownership.