In early 2023, as ChatGPT/OpenAI was first introduced to the public, I integrated this tool into my Executive MBA class at LUMS. During a lecture on business ethics, I assigned my students an impromptu task: to use ChatGPT to generate real-life scenarios illustrating ethical dilemmas at work. Working in their respective discussion rooms (DRs), they had 30 minutes to develop mini cases as a group and briefly present their ideas to the main class.
Through this exercise, I aimed not only to encourage my students to experiment with ChatGPT in the classroom and other academic settings but also to assess its effectiveness in a relatively controlled environment.
The results were encouraging in the sense that students in general were impressed and excited by the power of ChatGPT, and some interesting stories were presented. The results also revealed that individual creativity and hard work were still irreplaceable given that several student groups were unable to produce impressive results mainly due to poor imagination, poor prompts and the lack of credible data in their stories.
Personally I am of the view that banning ChatGPT is not the way forward. Instead there is a need to promote a culture of ethical conduct in responsibly and creatively using this tool in academic and professional work.
In this context, here is my adaptation of the practical tips for teachers offered by Hong Yang in a recent article in Nature Careers.
- Take some time to learn and practice entering prompts in ChatGPT, and encourage your students to do the same
- Clarify to your students that, not unlike other tools and resources, ChatGPT must be used in a responsible and ethical manner
- Define clear goals for a vivid understanding of what you want to achieve with ChatGPT, with a focus on intended learning outcomes
- Diversify your assessments, for example, by including oral presentations to avoid plagiarism.
- Be aware of the risk of ChatGPT worsening inequality, and continue to decolonize your curriculum and de-dominate the dominant discourses, theories and frameworks
- Clarify to students and researchers that ChatGPT is a tool that augments but does not replace manual research, and its outcomes must be carefully scrutinized, refined and updated.
- For an open book on site examination (in the absence of an oral exam), make sure that no access to Internet is provided.
(Jawad Syed)
South Asian Academy of Management 