University of Leeds publishes guidance on use of AI in assessments

The University of Leeds has published guidance on how it expects students to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) within assessments.

The document sets out a traffic light system which aims to make it clear when and how AI can be used by students.

Under the new system, some assessments have been designated as inappropriate for AI to be used.

These include in-person unseen examinations, class tests, some online tests, vivas, some laboratories and practicals, discussion-based assessments and assessments where spoken and written language skills are assessed.

The University says that the use of AI in so-called red category assessments will result in the academic misconduct procedure being triggered.

Professor Jeff Grabill, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Student Education, says: “As an institution, we remain convinced that AI holds great potential for enhancing various aspects of our teaching, research and administrative work.”

“However, we also acknowledge some of the challenges the technologies present in protecting academic integrity and ensuring any use of AI complies with our ethical standards, University regulations and our values”

Under the amber category, students will be allowed to use AI tools for “specific defined purposes within the assessment.”

This includes using AI to draft and structure content, as a support tutor, supporting a particular process such as testing and debugging code or translating content and providing ideas or inspiration to help overcome a creative block.

Assessments in the green category will permit the use of AI as a “primary tool throughout the assessment process.”

This only includes assessments where the use of AI is explicitly part of the task.

The guidance also sets out expectations on how students should reference the use of AI within their work.

The use of AI now must be acknowledged in any piece of academic work where it has been used as a “functional tool to assist in the process of creating academic work.”

The guidance says “if it is suspected that you have used a Gen AI tool to produce part of your work, but you have not acknowledged this use, this could be investigated under the Academic Misconduct procedure.”

Professor Jeff Grabill says that the guidance will come into full effect from the start of semester two after the January examinations and assessment period.

The guidance has been issued to University of Leeds staff today to enable them to prepare for its formal introduction next year. It will be fully communicated to students in the new year.

Professor Jeff Grabill says that the guidance will be reviewed and updated every six months to “ensure it incorporates the latest changes to AI technologies and evolving best practices institutionally and across the sector.”