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When my son headed off to college, I passed on a bit of advice I gleaned long after my own years on campus: Get to know your professors. Not only can one-on-one time help students learn the class material, but professors often act as mentors for navigating higher education and beyond – among many other benefits.

But what happens when an artificial intelligence chatbot comes in the middle? Will students simply ask the AI to elaborate on a point or give feedback on a project?

A team of researchers at the University of Pittsburgh found that generative AI products, such as ChatGPT and Gemini, are indeed changing those crucial relationships between students and professors, and among students themselves.

They surveyed undergraduate students this past spring about their experiences and found, amid stigma and accusations of cheating, that AI has led to distrust and anxiety. The research “tells a more complex story of students being thrust into a reality they didn’t ask for, with few clear guidelines and little control,” writes University of Pittsburgh researcher Elise Silva.

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Martin LaMonica

Director of Editorial Projects and Newsletters

Artificial intelligence has taken off on campus, changing relationships between students and professors and among students themselves. Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

University students feel ‘anxious, confused and distrustful’ about AI in the classroom and among their peers

Elise Silva, University of Pittsburgh

Whether students and faculty are actively using AI or not, it is having significant interpersonal, emotional effects on learning and trust in the classroom.

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