Clarence Woudsma, School of Planning
Summary: Adapt these examples of assignment-specific policies from FCIT 609 that permit or prohibit AI use, with direct inclusion of the University of Waterloo’s stance on academic integrity and the importance of drawing from personal experience.
Sample wording
- Restricting AI use for Perusall readings:
The purpose of these activities is to help you connect your personal experiences to the course content. Therefore, you should work on these activities alone, drawing on your own experiences, investigations, and thoughts. The use of GenAI tools for these activities is not appropriate at all – not even for quickly editing your submission. - Permitting use of AI for specific purposes but prohibiting others:
There are a variety of GenAI tools (Co-Pilot, ChatGPT, Claude etc.) that are evolving in their capabilities and significant impact on the world around us. Most sectors and their major employers are adopting GenAI tools and processes at some level, and it is critical that our students are prepared for that reality.
The core idea behind academic integrity is reflected in the following University statement – “Integrity is everywhere at the University of Waterloo. Whether learning, teaching, researching or working, members of our community must conduct themselves honestly.” The use of GenAI tools in our courses does not automatically contravene academic integrity standards because we put guidelines on how to work with them in place.
The expectation in this course is that you should work on these assignments alone, although using Generative AI is permitted in the ways described below. Further, you are responsible for your own learning. Generative AI tools are powerful (yet fallible) tools that you are encouraged to use on assignments in the follow ways: - As a learning support tool to obtain new skills and knowledge relevant to the assignment (preparing)
- As an enhancement to your idea generation – but not assignment content generation
- As an editor – enhancing the clarity and quality of your writing
Do not use Generative AI tools for generating an assignment outline, building arguments, explanations, or summarizing key points, for generating data, carrying out analysis or developing any content you will use in the assignment.
Assignment submissions must include an AI Disclosure Statement as an appendix that briefly outlines the way you used GenAI tools in the assignment.