Student’s Grade Adds New Dimension To Debate Over AI Use In Schools

The potential upside of artificial intelligence is that technology will make our lives easier by taking care of various common tasks. But there’s still a big question mark surrounding when and how we should use AI.

And education is a major topic of that ongoing debate, as evidenced by a case involving a high school student in Massachusetts.

See you in court

The parents of the teen say he received a low grade on a paper he submitted for which he used AI as a research tool. They stress that he wrote everything himself and simply used a large language model to help gather information.

While the school’s handbook broadly forbids AI use, describing it as cheating or plagiarism, the student’s parents say this case should not constitute a violation of the spirit of that rule.

Now they’re taking the case to court, insisting that this grade prevented him from landing a spot in the National Honor Society and might haunt him when the time comes to apply for college.

Making the case

The lawsuit offers a few reasons the complainants don’t believe the grade was fair. In addition to arguing that the blanket ban on AI wasn’t issued until after the paper was submitted, the parents say similar cases involving other students were handled with more leniency.

In order to resolve the issue, the parents are calling for:

• An updated policy regarding AI use for research
• Admittance for their son into the National Honor Society
• A revised grade of “B” on the assignment

It’ll probably be a while before there’s any real consensus regarding when and how AI should be used in education. But this case could soon bring at least a bit of resolution to a complex issue.

Chris Agee October 17th, 2024

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