IT was the night before the deadline, and Cheng Guangyu, a Beijing college junior, found himself still needing to complete four papers to fulfill his academic requirements for the semester. However, miraculously, the following day Cheng managed to submit all the papers without any delay.

Tech-savvy individuals might recognize this “miracle” as ChatGPT, an AI-powered tool. For students like Cheng who didn’t bother to conduct research, add citations, or even do their own writing, ChatGPT is truly remarkable.

“I simply provided ChatGPT with the general research directions and let it complete the papers on its own,” Cheng explained. “It actually did a better job than I could have done.”

Cheng was not alone in leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) technology among college students in China. Increasingly, students across the country are turning to AI writing applications to assist with their homework and research papers, with some even relying on AI to complete their graduation theses.

On Chinese online platforms like Zhihu, numerous users have shared stories of how their AI-generated papers garnered praise from their tutors, providing further evidence of the popularity of this writing method.

However, despite its seemingly impressive nature, AI-assisted academic writing does have limitations. One student in Hunan felt that AI writing tools were only useful for polishing articles and not competent enough when it came to presenting innovative ideas.

On the flip side, AI occasionally fabricates information. “When closely examining the citations in some AI-generated academic writings, one can discover that nearly all the crucial details, such as authors’ names and publications, are falsified,” revealed He Shiming, a professor at Changsha University of Science and Technology. “Even some references to historical events in these papers are entirely made up.”

The popularity of AI-assisted academic writing has sparked debates among college teachers in China, and various higher education institutions have set their own guidelines. There is still no consensus on whether AI writing constitutes a novel research method or an act of academic dishonesty.

Some proponents view AI writing as a valuable tool facilitated by technological advancements. Professor Yang Zhiping from Northeast Normal University shared his positive experience, stating that engaging with an AI model fed with sufficient material helped him refine his research approaches. Yang likened it to conversing with an extremely knowledgeable expert, emphasizing that the exchange of thoughts can foster the development of new ideas.

However, some teachers express concerns about students becoming overly reliant on AI-assisted writing due to its convenience. Professor Fu Weidong from Central China Normal University highlights the importance of reviewing any AI-generated thesis in accordance with existing academic standards. According to Fu, AI writing relies on collecting and processing existing knowledge, making it susceptible to thought repetition or even the reproduction of exact texts from existing academic works. Fu asserts that if the level of repetition exceeds the allowed limits, it should be considered plagiarism.

Xiong Bingqi, director of the 21st Century Education Research Institute in Beijing, advocates for specifying the scope and extent of AI usage in writing rather than outright prohibition. Xiong suggests that universities should offer courses on the use of AI writing tools to educate students about the standards, methods, and ethical considerations involved in AI-assisted academic writing.(Xinhua)