AI and the Take-Home Essay

According to Aristotle (and Aquinas and others), the human person is essentially rational and social; man thinks, and he thinks best in the context of friendship. As such, at the very heart of man's education ought to be learning to write effectively, for good writing is thought clarified and beautified which can be shared with others. Recent developments in Artificial Intelligence, however, seem to pose a formidable challenge to teachers who wish to help their students grow in this most human of crafts. To help us think through how we as teachers should approach this challenge, this week on HeightsCast we welcome Dr. Matthew Mehan, Associate Dean and Assistant Professor of Government for Hillsdale's Steve and Amy Van Andel Graduate School of Government on Capitol Hill. Despite the risks and challenges associated with it, Dr. Mehan argues that teachers should not abandon the at-home long essay. Indeed, as he points out, the creativity and thoughtfulness required by teachers who still wish to utilize the at-home essay, while mitigating the risks of cheating, may even make them better at their own art. As it becomes increasingly easier for a student to cheat his way through simplistic prompts and an outcome-focused approach to writing, teachers must now think more deeply about the kinds of written assignments they give their students and the process they use to guide them along the way. All this extra effort is well worth it. As Dr. Mehan reminds us: "If you cannot order your thoughts beautifully and rationally, cogently and powerfully, in writing, you cannot clarify your own thinking, nevermind then share that thinking in the most brilliant and candid way." Chapters 0:55 Introduction 4:00 Artificial intelligence and teaching the craft of writing 7:20 Are at-home assignments worth the risk of cheating? 14:00 The real good of teaching writing 15:45 Strategies for mitigating cheating 19:30 The importance of writing to thinking and socializing 20:55 Imitation and the art of writing 21:50 More strategies 25:40 Summary of strategies for mitigating risk Pre-conversations Discussion of thesis statement Pre-writing process Refining your prompts Imitation and style 27:00 A new era in education? 30:25 Will AI alter language more fundamentally? 31:50 Some ideas for essay prompts 37:12 Love, fear, and the stealing of ideas: the ethics of AI 44:05 Can AI really know anything? 46:15 How AI can make us better teachers 48:00 Cite your sources: the limitation of ChatGPT as a research tool 52:22 In-class vs. at-home essays Also on the Forum Writing from the Sentence Up by Joe Breslin 5 Don'ts and Dos When Teaching Writing by Joe Breslin On Writing: A Personal Reflection by Michael Ortiz Splashing in Puddles: Finding the Creative Writing Flow by Joe Bissex Why Our Politics Needs Poetry with Dr. Matthew Mehan