US universities to prevent AI-assisted plagiarism

Hyderabad:As many Indian universities are struggling with overwhelming volume of submissions, inconsistent use of detection tools, lack of uniform policies, accountability and more importantly cultural attitude of students towards academic work,

Several US universities have devised new strategies to prevent plagiarism, which has become rampant in the era of advanced artificial intelligence. To make plagiarism more difficult, professors are creating unique, personalised assignments that require students to draw on their own experiences or apply concepts to current events.

For example, Pennsylvania-based Carnegie Mellon University is encouraging its students to design ‘original assignments’ with multiple components to reduce opportunities for cheating. The university is also asking the students to submit outlines, drafts, and research notes before final papers.

Many universities are investing in advanced plagiarism detection tools that incorporate AI to identify AI-generated text. Companies like Turnitin have developed features specifically designed to detect content produced by AI. These tools analyse text patterns, syntax, and semantics to flag content that doesn't match a student's typical writing style or that exhibits characteristics common in AI-generated text.

College Station-based Texas A&M University, a top-tier research university involved in scientific exploration projects, is making use of `iThenticate’, a detection tool to screen pre-submission papers, proposals, and any other documents that are submitted by the students.

Once any student is found to be plagiarising, the university is giving zero grades in the subject which is badly affecting the career of the student.

Many Institutions are revising their honour codes and academic policies to explicitly address the use of AI in assignments. Unauthorised use of AI tools is being classified under cheating or plagiarism. Curricula are being updated to include AI literacy, teaching students how to use AI responsibly and understand its limitations.

As the detection tools are not fully foolproof in view of active use of Humanoid AI, there was some concern in top US universities as the students have started using paraphrasing tools to reword plagiarised text in a way that bypasses traditional plagiarism detection software.

The smart students started using ‘article spinning’ techniques powered by AI to change certain words or phrases within a plagiarised text to make it appear original. However, the top universities have evolved their own smart methods to check the students.

Amarnath, an Indian student from Texas A&M University, said that his university had introduced in-class writing and oral presentations to ensure that students demonstrate their knowledge without relying on external tools. The university is also giving assignments to students that require analysis, synthesis and evaluations that are less amenable to AI-generated solutions.

By changing the pattern for projects, the university is encouraging the projects that involve unique datasets, local issues or personal experiences to improve problem-solving tasks of the students, he said.

Combining technological tools, policy updates, educational efforts, and a strong emphasis on academic integrity, the US institutes are aiming to uphold the standards of original scholarship while adapting to the evolving landscape of AI in education.

With plagiarism already penetrating among Indian students particularly in social sciences, projects of engineering and other streams, the Indian universities must emulate the US to check this menace as a survey found that India already accounts for 45 per cent ChatGPT users.