Teacher Uses AI To Outsmart Cheating Students
Internet users are praising a teacher for an unconventional method of preventing students from cheating on tests, all with the assistance of ChatGPT.
The Challenge of Classroom Cheating
In a viral Reddit post, the user Jake_Corona detailed the struggles he faced with students "blatantly copying their neighbor's multiple choice quizzes." This English teacher tried various methods to deter his 15-year-old freshmen students from cheating, but they would often "play dumb" and feign offense when questioned.
Cheating was something Jake_Corona, the teacher, deeply disliked. He told Newsweek that he "felt frustrated" by certain students attempting to take shortcuts.
"I was upset for the students that made honest attempts to learn something from my class, while others would resort to cheating," he explained. "It was even more upsetting that if I called a student out, I would be gaslit and they would act like I was insane for suspecting them of cheating."
A Teacher's Innovative AI Solution
Confronted with this challenge, the ninth-grade teacher devised a clever solution using the OpenAI generative chatbot, ChatGPT. His instruction to the AI was to "generate as many different versions as possible" of his multiple-choice quiz. The 25 questions remained identical and in the same order across all tests; however, the multiple-choice answer options were arranged differently in each version.
By creating 24 different versions of the quiz, the teacher effectively ensured that any student who attempted to cheat would face the consequences. This method, however, would not negatively impact students who completed the quiz honestly on their own.
The Aftermath: The Power of Unique Quizzes
After the test, Jake_Corona wrote on Reddit: "The look of absolute confusion when the cheaters failed miserably while the few students who tried it on their own got decent grades was fun to see. You could tell they wanted to argue because their neighbor had the 'same form' but a better grade, but that would mean having to cop to the cheating."
Because every test paper had a unique answer order, Jake_Corona had to grade them individually by hand. Fortunately, he mentioned that it didn't take an excessive amount of time to grade all the papers.
"I think three or four of the usual suspects per class still cheated. One girl missed 11 straight answers, which I assume was due to copying a neighbor," Jake_Corona shared with Newsweek.
AI in Education: A Tool for Good
He further commented on the role of AI in education: "While AI can certainly be abused by students, it can also be used ethically to improve education. I have it make a list of recommended creative activities for students to show mastery of certain skills so my lessons don't become stale. Schools are quickly adapting to the use of AI, and people need to understand that it's not inherently evil."
While AI is not infallible and cannot replace the expertise of human teachers, it can serve as a valuable time-saving tool. Dr. Shari Camhi, superintendent of Baldwin Union Free School District in Baldwin, New York, and the 2022-23 president of the National School Superintendents Association, supports using AI to help prevent cheating.
Expert Perspectives on AI and Academic Integrity
Dr. Camhi told Newsweek that cheating, in most instances, arises from "fear, unpreparedness, or lack of understanding." Therefore, she believes a system designed to prevent cheating altogether is more effective than punitive actions taken after cheating has occurred.
She stated: "Most underestimate the daunting, albeit wonderful, task of being an educator. We all became teachers because we love children, we love to nurture them and bring life to their understanding of new ideas and knowledge. If we can take away some of the drudgery of the rote tasks, it's a good idea."
Cheating becomes significantly more difficult when assessments demand creativity and require students to demonstrate their understanding. Dr. Camhi advocates for authentic assessments that include comprehensive questions, necessitating a capacity "to go deep into learning"—unlike simple multiple-choice questions.
"Multiple choice is a memory driven exercise easily answered in a Google search. A good performance-based assessment requires knowledge, creativity and an ability to demonstrate understanding. Chat GPT is, as of yet, unable to do this on demand and live, in person," Camhi elaborated.
The Online Response
The teacher shared his innovative technique on Reddit on May 27, and the post quickly gained traction, accumulating over 65,000 views and 3,200 comments at the time of writing.
The response surpassed his expectations, and he hopes it will shed light on the realities of being a teacher in 2025.
Indeed, many internet users have praised his cleverness in catching potential cheaters.
One comment read: "I think your solution was amazing, well done."
Another Reddit user commented: "That is how you turn multiple choice to multiple oops."
Another person added: "This actually sounds like a useful way to use AI. Congrats on your inventiveness and hopefully your students will start to realize cheaters don't prosper."
While one commenter replied: "This is great! I'm sure the satisfaction of catching the cheaters made hand-grading almost enjoyable!"
Do you have any viral videos or pictures that you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to life@newsweek.com and they could appear on our site.
