possible conversation topic?

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Aug 1, 2025, 11:14:34 AM8/1/25
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Hi,

Hope everyone is enjoying summer and getting ready for fall!  Speaking of, I’ve heard lots of good advice recently on syllabus changes.  Have you as well? Anything you would open to sharing with the rest of us?!  What are you changing?

Beth

kc...@clark.edu

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Aug 1, 2025, 4:50:57 PM8/1/25
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Hi All,
I've added an AI section to my syllabus.  I added it for the summer term, and we'll see if it makes any dent in the inappropriate AI use.   (I also put these paragraphs in the directions for each item they apply to, so that students will see it) 

AI use policy for Math& 146:

This policy outlines how AI tools, such as ChatGPT, Bard, Gemini, Wolfram Alpha, and similar platforms, may be used in this course to enhance your learning experience while maintaining the integrity of our assessment processes. AI can be a powerful tool to achieve this goal, but only when used thoughtfully and ethically. Think of AI as a sophisticated, always-available tutor, not a substitute for your own critical thinking and effort.

Allowed use of AI:

HW problems sets:  you can use AI to help you when you get stuck.  If it generates a quick solution, make sure YOU understand the steps and can do them with our set of tech pages (such as Salt, math portal, or your graphing calculator).  You can ask AI to generate a few practice problems similar to ones in the HW.  AI can help you look up vocabulary terms.

Statistics activities: you can use AI as your sidekick, but put concepts into your own words, and Cite Your Use, as in, if AI significantly aids your understanding of a complex concept that you then explain the answer in a few sentences, a simple acknowledgment like "AI helped me clarify X concept" is needed.

 No AI use: 

Unit tests and final exam: No AI assistance is permitted during exams. This includes using AI to generate solutions, check answers, or explain concepts during the assessment period.

 

Why the difference: The homework sets and activities are part of your learning process, so you can use lots of tools to help you increase your understanding of the course concepts.  But the purpose of the unit tests and final exam is to evaluate your individual mastery of the course material. If an AI tool completes the work for you, it demonstrates the AI's capabilities, not yours. 


Kate


Michelle Everson

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Aug 1, 2025, 4:51:02 PM8/1/25
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Hi Beth,

I'm not sure if this is in line with what you are looking for, but I have been thinking a lot lately about the kind of language I use in my syllabus in order to create a sense of belonging in my course.  I attended a presentation from our teaching center about syllabus strategies to foster student sense of belonging, and it gave me some good ideas.  

If I am honest, this whole summer has been a serious time of soul-searching for me.  All of the talk about GenAI, whether and how we can incorporate it into our courses, whether we have to be more worried than ever about students cheating, etc., has been difficult for me to reconcile.  As I look ahead to a new academic year, I find myself wanting to do more with the large-enrollment course I teach in order to cultivate an atmosphere of trust in the classroom.  I want to have open and honest discussions with my students about academic integrity, and I want to make sure that my students know that their mental health is of utmost importance to me.  I want all of my students to feel seen, heard and valued.  Thus, I have spent a lot of time thinking about messages I can be sending right from the start, through the syllabus--and beyond--in order to set a particular tone from Day 1.  

Another thing I have done is to re-think my late work and make-up policies.  Michelle Miller's blog gave me some ideas where this is concerned.  

OSU is now beginning a new AI Fluency initiative, so, in the future, I anticipate that I might have to think about a way to more systematically incorporate AI into my course.  I do little of that now, other than to sometimes show students examples of AI getting things wrong and asking students to correct the misinformation.   Rather than think about ways to police/proctor/surveil students at every turn so they do not use AI inappropriately, I hope to spend time this coming year thinking more carefully about how I can use more authentic types of assessments, and how I might ask questions in a better way so that even if students do turn to AI to do the work for them, they won't necessarily be guaranteed of getting the right answer.

Thank you for starting this discussion!  Again, this might not be what you had in mind when posing the question, but it's where I'm currently at in my own teaching journey.  🙂

My best,

Michelle

Powers, Rick

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Aug 2, 2025, 10:30:14 AM8/2/25
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Greetings:

Thanks, Kate, for sharing this.  I will be adding something similar to my syllabi in the fall.

Also, I use oral assessment (interviews) for my classes, and due to AI, I have increased their impact, so they are now 30% of the course grade.  

Rick Powers
Math instructor
Western Technical College
La Crosse campus

I live and work on the traditional lands of the Ho Chunk Nation.

Pronouns: he/his
?Clifton Strengths: Learner * Intellection * Input * Ideation * Restorative
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Liu, Yi

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Aug 3, 2025, 11:41:02 AM8/3/25
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Same here -- Thank you so much,  Kate, for sharing.

 

 

Yi Liu,  Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Practice

Information Systems and Operations Management

Yi....@uta.edu

817-272-7314

 

 

 

 

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Michelle Everson

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Aug 3, 2025, 11:41:18 AM8/3/25
to Beth L. Chance, EAPOST Group
I don't have a survey about sense of belonging, but there are lots of great books out there that I can recommend that focus on effective strategies for cultivating that kind of environment.  I've linked to some of my favorites below.  

Snafu Edu (this has some great chapters about trust)







On Fri, Aug 1, 2025 at 5:11 PM Beth L. Chance <bch...@calpoly.edu> wrote:

Thank you for sharing Michelle!  I agree that open conversations are a good way to go, and starting on Day 1! I want the students to know I’m working with them not against them.  A talk that struck with me from Covid is if they think you are working against them, they will spend all their time trying to find ways around you, which is not a productive use of time for either side 😊

 

I wonder, do you have any kind of survey on their sense of belonging in the course?  It would be great to learn more about effective strategies in cultivating that.

 

Beth

 

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Hi Beth,

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Michelle Everson

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Aug 3, 2025, 1:00:13 PM8/3/25
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Oops!  I almost forgot one.  🙂

Michelle Everson

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Aug 3, 2025, 1:00:20 PM8/3/25
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I really like what you have shared here as well, Kate.  Thank you!  You've given me some good ideas about how to word certain things as I work on my autumn syllabi.  

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Musaad, Salma

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Aug 3, 2025, 1:00:45 PM8/3/25
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Hello everyone 
So excited to be part of this group. This year was my first USCOTS. Amazing energy.

 These are great resources, thanks Kate and Michelle 

I like to talk to my trainees about ethical concerns of generative AI. 
I work in a medical center, and always thought about ways to be welcoming and more inclusive  with learners who come from universities  in the community. They feel rushed and uncertain of their career prospects.  I will think how to integrate such constructs mentioned in this conversation especially sense of belonging and compassion. These are important yet challenging constructs. Do you find that adding them warrants  short pre and post assessments  as evidence of impact?

Salma


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Beth L. Chance

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Sep 14, 2025, 2:01:36 PM9/14/25
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Hi everyone,

 

So I’m finally putting my syllabus together and circled back to Kate’s post. You said you tried it for summer first – did you see it making any improvement?  Anything else you changed afterwards?

 

One phrasing I’m playing with is on some assignments telling them I would rather they enter “did not finish” (and at least getting partial if not full credit!) than paste in an AI solution because I want to read their thoughts and give them direct feedback, no point in me doing that for ChatGPT etc. 

 

By the way, back to Michelle’s other point, a math professor and I tried to put together a short survey about belonging.  I don’t have quick access to our sources (I can dig them up but probably a subset of what Michelle shared earlier).  Here is a draft (Survey - Statistics department) but this is about the major, not an individual course.

 

Thanks,

Beth

Cook, Kate

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Sep 15, 2025, 3:58:15 PM9/15/25
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Hi All,

With my new AI statement in place, I saw more authentic writing from students when I asked them to reflect on our activities — fewer "big" words, a bit more stumbling to get the point across, and I loved it!  I didn't see any blatant AI use on the assessments, and saw less (but still plenty, uncredited) on the activities, where they are allowed to carefully use AI.  I'm going to stick with this version of the syllabus for another term or 2 before I iterate again.
A gem:  One student posted his results from asking AI to interpret statistical concepts in a "detective" setting — and it was amazing — doc attached.

Kate

Kate Cook

Pronouns: She/Her

Clark College Math Dept

Office:  BHL 009

Mail Stop: BHL 110

360-992-2008

 

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stat terms in detective language.docx
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