Week 5: Assessment and Academic Integrity
Rethinking assessment in the AI era
Today’s Session
- Understanding what AI changes about assessment
- Why detection-based approaches fail
- Design principles for AI-resistant assessments
- Specific assessment formats that work
What AI Fundamentally Changes
AI can now produce competent responses to most traditional assessments.
AI Handles Well
- Five-paragraph essays on standard topics
- Problem solutions with step-by-step explanations
- Research summaries on any subject
- Creative writing in various genres
The Assessment Validity Crisis
Are you measuring student capability or AI capability?
The Broken Assumption
Traditional assessments assumed students worked independently without sophisticated assistance.
Why Detection Will Not Save You
- Detection tools show 30-40% false positive rates
- Students evade detection easily by paraphrasing
- False accusations destroy student-teacher relationships
- The detection arms race is technologically unwinnable
Human Cost of False Accusations
- Honest students accused based on faulty tools
- Loss of trust in teachers and school systems
- Emotional distress from being disbelieved
- Lasting damage to student-teacher relationships
Principle 1: Make Process Visible
- Require submission of drafts with timestamps
- Include in-class components for major assignments
- Use brief oral examinations about submitted work
- Ask students to document their thinking process
Principle 2: Personalize to Classroom
- Connect to specific class discussions and examples
- Reference individual student experiences from class
- Build on previously submitted student work
- Include locally-specific content AI cannot know
Principle 3: Require Original Analysis
- Ask for novel applications of concepts
- Require connections to personal experience
- Demand evaluation and judgment, not summary
- Focus on critique of AI-generated content
Principle 4: Make AI Use Transparent
- Allow AI for specified portions, require disclosure
- Ask students to reflect on AI contributions
- Assess how well students used AI
- Evaluate student judgment about when to use AI
- Timed writing or problem-solving
- Open-note exams testing application
- Collaborative work with visible individual contributions
- Laboratory practicals and demonstrations
- One-on-one conferences about written work
- Presentations with spontaneous questioning
- Defense of research or projects
- Socratic seminars where students discuss texts
- Science lab investigations with observation
- Art and music performances
- Physical demonstrations in PE and technical subjects
- Real-time problem-solving with think-aloud
Portfolio Assessment
- Multiple drafts showing revision process
- Self-assessment and reflection on learning
- Teacher conferences discussing the work
- Evidence of skill development across semester
Process Documentation Requirements
- Brainstorming notes and concept maps
- Research notes with source citations
- Outline or planning documents
- Multiple drafts with revision evidence
- What was most challenging and why?
- How did your understanding develop as you worked?
- What strategies did you use when stuck?
- If you used AI, how did you decide what to accept?
Using AI as the Subject
- Generate AI response, then critique its accuracy
- Compare AI output to authoritative sources
- Improve AI-generated work with research and editing
- Analyze how different prompts affect responses
Balancing AI-Allowed and AI-Restricted
- AI-restricted work: Verifying fundamental skills students need
- AI-allowed work: Higher-order tasks and complex projects
When AI Should Be Prohibited
- Foundational skills students must develop independently
- Preparation for AI-restricted environments
- Assessment of individual mastery for placement
- Work where the struggle is essential
When AI Collaboration Makes Sense
- Complex research requiring synthesis of sources
- Professional writing where AI aids clarity
- Data analysis where AI accelerates computation
- Creative projects where AI serves as brainstorming partner
Building Integrity Culture
- Clearly explain why academic integrity matters
- Model honest use of resources and attribution
- Recognize and celebrate honest effort
- Address violations educationally, not just punitively
Technology That Supports Integrity
- Revision history tracking in Google Docs
- Time-stamped documentation of process
- Controlled testing environments for AI-free work
- Screen recording for complex problem-solving
Assessment Redesign Process
- Audit current assessments for AI vulnerability
- Identify priority changes based on impact
- Design alternative assessments using principles
- Communicate changes to students, parents, faculty
Subject-Specific Redesign
- English: Process portfolios, conferences, in-class writing
- Math: Problem-solving with explanation, oral defenses
- Science: Lab practicals, research with documented process
- Social Studies: Document-based analysis, Socratic seminars
The Elementary Approach
- Observation of in-class work and participation
- One-on-one reading and math assessments
- Performance demonstrations
- Portfolio of work created in class
The Middle School Challenge
- Gradual increase in take-home work with documentation
- Combination of in-class and at-home components
- Regular conferences about work
- Teaching process documentation explicitly
The High School Reality
- Mix of AI-allowed and AI-restricted assessments
- Sophisticated process documentation requirements
- Oral defenses of major projects
- In-class components for high-stakes assessments
Common Assessment Redesign Mistakes
- Relying primarily on AI detection
- Eliminating all take-home assignments
- Treating all assessments identically
- No communication about changes to students
Equity Considerations
- In-class assessments must accommodate IEPs and 504 plans
- Oral assessments need support for English learners
- Process documentation requires explicit teaching
- Technology requirements must be school-provided
Communication About Changes
- Explain why changes are necessary
- Describe what will be different and why
- Provide examples of new formats
- Give students time to adjust expectations
Workshop Activity
Redesign a key assessment from your school.
Redesign Steps
- Select a vulnerable assessment commonly used
- Identify what it measures and why that matters
- Apply redesign principles to create AI-resistant version
- Plan communication to students, parents, teachers
This Week’s Takeaway
AI forces clarity about what we actually want to assess.
The Clarity
If process matters, assess process. If individual capability matters, verify it directly.
Looking Ahead
Week 6 addresses sustainable governance.
Effective Governance Requires
- Structures for ongoing policy review
- Processes for responding to new developments
- Stakeholder engagement mechanisms
- Change management for continuous adaptation