Establishing principles for the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in Scottish education is “a matter of urgency”, the Hayward report on qualifications and assessment warns.
The report advises that ChatGPT and other similar technology should not be banned in schools, with pupils and teachers instead being supported to make use of fast-emerging AI technology as a way of reducing inequity and bureaucracy around assessment.
“If all learners have access to AI, it might even help to level the playing field,” the report states.
It also foresees coursework remaining a key part of assessment, despite arguments from some that AI could fuel cheating and lead to an increase in exam-based assessment around the world.
The interim report from Professor Louise Hayward’s (pictured) review in early March received some criticism for failing to address the potential impact of AI, but the final version includes a six-page section devoted to AI and assessment.
The final Hayward report, published last week, recommends:
- The establishment of a cross-sector commission on education and AI “as a matter of urgency”, led by the Scottish government, “to develop a shared-value position on the future of AI in education and a set of guiding principles for the use of AI”.
- The use of AI “large language models” (or LLM), such as ChatGPT, “should not be banned but learners and teachers/lecturers must be supported to make best use of them”, as “AI offers the potential to reduce administrative burdens and to lessen the time taken for other teaching tasks”.
- “Coursework should remain an integral part of qualifications but existing tasks should be reviewed to ensure that they are compatible with...recent developments in AI.”
Education researcher Barry Black, who led much of the criticism about the absence of AI in the interim report, tweeted that the recommendation of a cross-sector commission on education and AI was “great news” if accepted by the Scottish government.
How will AI impact on assessment?
However, Lindsay Paterson, a University of Edinburgh emeritus professor of education policy, writes in a piece for the Reform Scotland think tank that the Hayward report’s sections on AI “tell us nothing new, and barely even acknowledge that it is likely to become a new dimension of inequality because access to the best equipment will be rationed by affordability”. Professor Paterson expresses doubt about the report’s “faith in teachers being able to spot when a pupil’s work is not their own”, which he says is not backed up by research on plagiarism.
The final Hayward report states: “One of the most common challenges emerging from AI is the fear that its use will lead to cheating in coursework.” However, it adds that “cheating is not a new concern” and that “coursework, and the potential to cheat, has always been a source of concern in high-stakes assessment”.
In April the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) wrote to schools over concerns that AI could be used to generate coursework - including essays, dissertations and presentations - which often count towards students’ final grades.
The SQA told teachers and lecturers that they “must ensure that learners understand what constitutes malpractice and the potential consequence of copying or misusing technology”, including that they “risk serious penalty” and could ultimately fail the course.
The final Hayward report also notes that equity around existing approaches to coursework was a concern raised by a number of respondents, given “perceptions that learners from socially advantaged communities were more likely to be supported at home”. It states that “if all learners have access to AI, it might even help to level the playing field”.
But the report advises that, with the advent of technology such as ChatGPT, “different kinds of tasks will be needed in coursework”, adding: “For example, a learner could be asked to generate a ChatGTP answer and the coursework task would be to check the accuracy of the response or to consider how AI-generated responses might be improved.”
AI could also “generate a far wider variety of forms of evidence of learning” than commonly used methods, such as essays.
The report also reflects the views of teachers and students who have been experimenting with ChatGPT: “Some teachers have reported that lesson plans can be produced in a fraction of the time taken traditionally. Others have used ChatGPT to evaluate papers and have reported that it provided detailed and useful feedback very quickly.”
The report adds: “Websites are already beginning to emerge with lists of how to use AI to help teachers and learners; for example, Ditch that Textbook. As with all resources, these need the critical, professional eye of the teacher, but they offer the potential to allow teachers to spend more time on supporting learning rather than on more bureaucratic activities.”
However, “a coordinated national approach” to AI in education is viewed as “essential”.
The Hayward report notes contrasting views on AI, with Ofqual, England’s chief exam regulator, having argued that “AI bots could lead to the end of coursework with invigilated examinations becoming more important”, whereas the chief executive of the International Baccalaureate has “proposed that we should learn to live with AI”.
