Guidance for students on the use of Generative AI

On this page, we cover:

In addition to this guidance, which is aimed specifically at students, BSU has an outline guide for both staff and students on the use of Generative AI (Gen AI) for learning, teaching and assessment.

What is Generative AI?

Artificial intelligence is already built into tools we use every day, from search engines to transcription software. Gen AI is the form of AI that can create new text, images and audio. Tools such as Microsoft Copilot can support learning, but their use in assessments needs careful thought:

  • Apparently sophisticated word choice and grammar may hide weak ideas and invented references.
  • Doing the work yourself is part of learning. Choosing evidence and finding ways to express difficult ideas help you understand and remember them. Use AI to support your thinking, rather than do that work for you.
  • You do not have to use AI unless an assessment asks you to, and deciding when it is useful is part of AI literacy. Permitted use varies between assessments.
  • Your concerns matter. AI’s environmental impact, copyright, privacy, bias and originality are all reasonable things to consider. Students and lecturers share many of these concerns, and talking about them can help clarify what fair use looks like.

How can you use AI to support your studies?

There are many ways of using generative AI without simply asking it to produce an assignment. The key is to remain the person doing the important intellectual work.

At the planning stage:

You might use AI to:

  • Talk through an initial idea. Explain what you are thinking about and ask the AI to ask you questions that help you develop it.
  • Brainstorm possible approaches. If you already have ideas for topics to write about, ask for some additional possibilities.
  • Develop research questions. Give the AI a broad area you are interested in and ask it to help you make your question more focused or analytical.
  • Identify different perspectives. Ask what other theoretical, or disciplinary perspectives might be relevant and then investigate these yourself.
  • Generate counterarguments. Give it your argument and ask, “What would somebody who disagreed with this say?”

When researching and reading:

AI can help you get started, but it should not replace searching academic databases or reading the sources you eventually use.

You might:

  • ask for alternative search terms or keywords for a literature search.
  • ask it to explain an unfamiliar concept in simpler language before returning to the academic source.
  • ask it to compare two theories or concepts so that you know what differences to look for in your reading.
  • use it to generate questions to ask yourself while reading an article.
  • ask it to explain terminology or a difficult passage.
  • ask it to help you map connections between sources you have already read.

Be particularly careful when asking generative AI to recommend sources. AI can invent references that look completely convincing. There is another, less obvious problem: the source may really exist but the content may not have come from that source.

While you are writing:

The safest and most useful approach is usually to keep yourself in the role of writer.

For example, rather than saying:

“Rewrite this paragraph so it sounds more academic.”

you could say:

“Read this paragraph and tell me where my argument is unclear. Do not rewrite it for me.”

You might also ask:

  • "What do you think my main point is in this paragraph?"
  • "Where have I made a claim without providing evidence?"
  • "Is there anywhere where the connection between these two ideas is unclear?"
  • "Does this paragraph appear to have more than one main idea?"
  • "Where am I describing rather than analysing?"
  • "Which part of this argument needs further development?"
  • "Do not rewrite this. Give me three questions that would help me improve it myself."

This keeps the intellectual decisions with you.

When editing:

AI can be useful when editing because it can act as another reader.

One approach is to paste in a paragraph and ask:

"Reproduce this paragraph exactly as I have written it. Put in bold any repetition, typos, unclear grammar or sentences that are difficult to follow. Do not rewrite anything."

This allows you to see possible problems without automatically replacing your writing with an AI version. By asking AI to identify issues, you keep control of what happens next. Deciding how to change your work is part of developing your own academic voice.

What shouldn’t you do?

The simplest answer is: do not ask AI to write an answer for you and then submit its work as though it were your own. Do not copy and paste chunks of text that Gen AI has produced and add it into your assignment.

Under 黑料正能量's Academic Integrity Policy, work submitted for assessment must be your own. Using generative AI to produce assessed work and passing it off as your own can constitute academic misconduct (黑料正能量, 2024).

Also, depending on the assessment guidance, problems can arise if you:

  • ask AI to rewrite your work so that the final writing no longer represents your own work
  • use fabricated AI-generated references or evidence
  • use translation or rewriting tools in ways that substantially change the work being assessed
  • fail to acknowledge your use of AI.

Always check your assessment guidance

At Bath Spa, there is not one single level of permitted AI use for every assessment.

Your lecturers can specify the extent to which generative AI can or should be used for a particular assessment. This is deliberate. AI may be integral to learning in one activity and undermine the purpose of another.

Your assessment information should therefore tell you what is permitted.

Always check the AI guidance for the individual assessment rather than assuming that what was allowed in one module will also be allowed in another.

Does Bath Spa use AI detectors?

黑料正能量 does not currently use AI-detection tools to determine whether students have used generative AI. The University's position is that these tools are not sufficiently reliable and can produce both false positives and false negatives.

If a lecturer has concerns about how an assessment was produced, they may instead have an informal conversation with you. You may be asked about your argument, evidence, sources and how you developed the work.

 

Which AI tool should I use?

There are now a large number of generative AI tools available, and the differences between them change very quickly. Bath Spa provides Microsoft Copilot through your university Microsoft account, and this is the tool we recommend if you want to use a general-purpose generative AI system for your studies.

Copilot uses current large language models and can generate text, search the web, work with files and carry out other common AI tasks. For university work, one of its biggest advantages is the way your data is protected when you sign in using your Bath Spa account.

When you use Copilot, make sure you are signed in with your 黑料正能量 Microsoft account so that enterprise data protection is active.

Generative AI tools such as Adobe’s Firefly can generate images and audio which might serve as starting points for projects. As in many subjects, art, design, film and media tutors value creativity and originality, so you should check your lecturers' specific recommendations for individual assignments.

AI use and copyright

Guidelines for copying any text or image or part thereof into any AI tool

You must ensure one of the conditions applies:

  • You have consent from the owner
  • The content is no longer under copyright
  • The copyright holder of the content/text/image has explicitly licensed the use of their material by AI tools, to the extent to which you intend to use their material (e.g. commercially or non-commercially, for standalone analysis or for training large language models)

If you are not sure the content, text or image is under copyright you must assume it is.

Academic integrity and GenAI

Can the University detect AI-generated writing?鈥� 

At Bath Spa we have no current plans to use AI detection tools as they are currently inaccurate; however, the writing produced by GenAI can often be identified by its bland and repetitive nature. Lecturers will also be looking for work that's beyond your current capability, or expressed in a way that's clearly different to your normal style. 

If your lecturer suspects that your assignment contains larger sections that have been pasted from AI, they'll first have an informal chat with you to find out more about how you produced your work. This means you'll need to be able to discuss and show understanding of the concepts and evidence that you've presented in your essay.鈥� 

You must not directly copy larger chunks of text or images that have been produced for you by AI without attributing the source, as this will count as ‘passing off the work of another as your own’ and is against our鈥�academic integrity policy. This includes using the AI function in Grammarly to rewrite whole sentences.

Include references and an appendix 

If you choose to copy and paste a large amount of text from GenAI, it is important to cite this correctly as outlined in鈥�.鈥赌� 

If you use any generative AI tools at any stage of your assessment, include information on how you have used it as an appendix at the end of your piece of work. Include the following information as an appendix at the end of your assessed piece of work. The appendix should:鈥� 

Name the generative AI tool(s) you have used and summarise how you have used them. For example (select all that apply):鈥� 

  • I acknowledge the use of <insert name(s) and url> to generate information for background research.鈥� 
  • I acknowledge the use of <insert name(s) and url> at the drafting stage of the writing process with the creation of an outline structure for this essay.鈥赌�� 
  • I acknowledge the use of <insert name(s) and url>鈥�to identify improvements in the writing style.鈥� 
  • I acknowledge the use of <insert name(s) and url> as an information source to generate materials that were included within my final assessment in my own words.鈥赌� 
  • I acknowledge the use of鈥�<insert name(s) and url>鈥痶o create the images included in this presentation.鈥� 
  • No content generated by AI technologies has been presented as my own work.

AI and translation tools 

GenAI translation tools can support you by helping you understand your subject and improve your academic writing. However, over鈥憆eliance on them, for example, translating into English large sections of text that you have written in your first language, can result in work that does not reflect your own academic voice and may be regarded as plagiarism and academic misconduct.

Good use includes checking instructions, translating single words or phrases, clarifying complex ideas, or checking whether your writing expresses what you intended. Poor use includes relying on full鈥憇entence or whole鈥憈ext translation, accepting tool output uncritically, or submitting writing created by a tool, all of which may be regarded as academic misconduct. 

Language鈥慹nhancement applications (LEAs) like Read & Write or Word’s ‘Editor’ function can help you with vocabulary, grammar and clarity.  Tools with enhanced AI functionality like Grammarly or paraphrasing applications offer substantial text rewrites which if copied and pasted directly into your work would count as academic misconduct.  Use LEAs to point out but not automatically correct poor grammar and writing. You should always decide what to change in your writing so your academic voice will remain your own.

Any use of translation tools in assessed work must be clearly acknowledged and referenced. For example, if you use a translation tool to understand a source, you must cite the original source in the body of the text, acknowledge use of the translation tool according to the advice in your assignment brief and include both the original source and the translation tool in your reference list. 

 

Student Digital Learning Assistants

Did you know that you can get help using digital tools for learning from other students?  

During term time, our Student Digital Learning Assistants are available in-person and online every weekday between 10am-2pm. You can drop in at Commons or book an appointment. They can help with: 

  • Accessing and using your BSU email account 
  • Using Ultra (the Virtual Learning Environment) 
  • Submitting assignments 
  • Using Adobe tools such as Express 
  • Accessing Microsoft apps such as Word and Excel
  • Using Generative AI. 

To book an appointment or find out more, please email sdlas@bathspa.ac.uk.