On March 15, the Campolindo library put up an AI plagiarism board in hopes of getting students and teachers to open up about their opinions about AI, Grammarly, and whether these tools are helpful or harmful for students. Librarian Liz Herring spoke about the purpose of this AI plagiarism board.
Herring explained that she thought “an interactive display would be a great way to get students and staff involved. Students and staff can be anonymous and decide when they think AI stops being a kind of plagiarism or cheating mechanism and becomes more of a tool for success.” Additionally, Library Media Technician Lisa Triggas spoke about how the AI board opened her eyes to material she has never used before. Triggas stated, “We have several polls throughout the year that Ms. Herring has put together.”
Herring and Triggas also spoke about how AI can be a very dangerous tool because it may take away some skills that students need to have on their own and so they shouldn’t rely on AI for everything. Triggas stated, “I hope that students realize the level of plagiarism involved and maybe they will change their opinions.”
Grammarly is a hot topic when it comes to plagiarism and AI. Herring shared that Grammarly is a great tool for students when it comes to finding a common pattern when making mistakes in writing, such as punctuation. She also believes that Grammarly can not be a great tool when it comes to certain things when writing. “If we just shove our work through Grammarly and then submit whatever we get back that is not a great use…it’s about being intentional,” she said.
Ms. Herring and Ms.Triggas’ AI plagiarism display in the library is an important way to start discussions about the way that students use AI and put some policies into place to better serve the school community.
