Utilisation of artificial intelligence in teaching and studies at Laurea University of Applied Sciences
The purpose of these guidelines is to ensure that artificial intelligence (AI) is used to support teaching and learning in a useful and reliable way. The recommendations issued by the Rectors’ Conference of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences on the utilisation of AI were used in the drafting of these regulations. As a rule, AI and language models may be used to support teaching and studying. The use of AI should always be implemented in a responsible and open manner.
General guidelines
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is generally permitted, and its utilization must always be disclosed. When using and leveraging AI, consider the traffic light model of Arene (pdf).
AI can complement and support teaching and learning but does not directly replace the teacher's instruction, guidance, or other learning materials.
Students should be informed about the principles and drawbacks of using AI. Information about AI can be provided, for example, at the beginning of studies, during study guidance, in thesis seminars, and in methodology courses.
Privacy, data protection, and the terms of use of the AI service must be taken care of. Using AI may sometimes require the disclosure of personal information, such as a name or email address. The use of AI tools must not compromise the data protection or privacy of staff or students. When using AI, the data protection practices of the university of applied sciences must be followed.
The use of recording AIs during virtual teaching events, meetings, and other gatherings is generally prohibited (so-called meeting bots). However, a participant can negotiate with the meeting organizer and participants well in advance of the event about the use of recording AI. The handling of meeting materials and recordings is subject to Laurea's normal data protection practices, meaning they can be handled with AI and other applications defined as secure (e.g., Microsoft product family and Zoom).
The source must always be mentioned, even if the text is produced with the help of AI. Check the citation format from Laurea's citation guide. AI cannot be used directly as an expert source, and the accuracy of the sources produced by AI must be verified.
Copyrights must be respected, and students, teachers, and other members of Laurea must ensure that they have the right to use and share content produced by AI or that they have the right to handle content with AI from a copyright perspective.
AI must be used ethically. AI should not be used in an offensive manner or in a way that violates applicable laws, rules, or regulations.
Individual courses may deviate from these recommendations for justified reasons. Exceptions and their justifications must be clearly communicated to students.
Instructions for students
Students must follow the instructions given by the teacher regarding the use of AI in courses and the AI usage method announced in the course based on Arene's traffic light model.
AI-based language models can be used for text editing. The use of a language model for language and text editing is justified, for example, to produce grammatically correct or structurally fluent text. A language model can be used to format existing text or to seek ideas for self-written text.
Students must disclose how and what AI they have used if they have used it in an assignment or thesis.
Students are always responsible for the content of the text they submit. Various AI applications can write text that appears very knowledgeable but may contain factual errors. AI should never be used to produce the final assignment or thesis text, and such AI-generated text or images should not be presented as the student's own work. In cases of misconduct, Laurea's examination regulations will be followed.
If a teacher suspects fraudulent use of AI (an achievement can be deemed fraudulent if it is sufficiently likely to be AI-generated or if AI use has not been disclosed or referenced correctly), they can arrange an alternative way for the student to demonstrate competence, where AI cannot be used. If the student refuses alternative competence verification, Laurea's examination regulations for misconduct will be followed.
Unsubstantiated claims should be avoided. AI can provide information that has not been verified, so students must ensure that the information provided by AI is reliable and can be substantiated, for example, by referencing a corresponding expert source.
It is advisable to learn to utilize the AI tools offered by the university.
Considerations of AI use in teaching and planning
Teachers must communicate and inform about the use of AI in their courses, for example, based on Arene's traffic light model for AI use. You can add your own clarifications to communication and instructions if needed.
When planning learning tasks and assessments, teachers must ensure that a course cannot be completed solely by using AI or a language model. Learning tasks can be tightly linked to the learning material used or to a lesser-known case, an applied example, or a work-life assignment. It is good to test the used learning tasks by inputting them into a language model and seeing if it can produce an acceptable answer.
In assignments, it is advisable to emphasize the student's own understanding and skill development: do, build, choose, analyze, reflect.
Students can be asked to interpret images or create graphical presentations.
Students can be instructed to add personal examples to their analysis.
Students can be asked to document the work they have done during the learning process and reflect on their learning throughout the process.
Teaching critical thinking is essential. It is important to consider that AI is not always correct, and in complex situations and matters, it does not always take into account all the influencing factors.
Competence should be made visible. Teachers can use "explain in your own words" video exams and group exams and utilize on-campus presence for competence demonstration.
The assignment can include a future perspective.
All used sources must be correctly cited in the text or presentations according to Laurea's citation guide.
Teachers should be aware of the rapid development pace of AI technologies.
If a teacher has a sufficiently probable suspicion of fraudulent use of AI or if AI use has not been disclosed or referenced correctly, they must be prepared to arrange an alternative way to demonstrate competence, where AI cannot be used. If the student refuses alternative competence verification, Laurea's examination regulations for misconduct will be followed.
Guidelines for referencing and utilizing AI
The utilization of AI must be clearly indicated in the text whenever it has been used in the production or editing of text and images. Additionally, it must be stated how it has been utilized, for example, in reading information sources and analyzing data.
When AI is used to edit the language and smooth the text, it should be stated in the introduction of the text, for example, as follows: "ChatGPT has been used in this report to edit the language and smooth the text."
It should also be mentioned at the end of the text's reference list. For example:
"This text's language editing has utilized ChatGPT (or another AI program)."
More detailed citation guidelines related to AI can be found in Laurea's guidelines for referencing (pdf).