I’m always learning something. Recently, I’ve been taking several drawing classes, as well as product management courses. What has surprised me is the amount of AI-slop responses that other students submit as answers to the optional group questions or peer-reviewed assignments.
One of the platforms I use most is Coursera. On Coursera, there are often different ways modules are presented and then ways students are engaged or tested. Splitting up video and text content, there are forum-style prompts where you’re asked a single, optional question, which submits to a board that other students can reply to. The amount of unedited AI slop replies to these boards is astounding.
There are several telltale signs that someone is using AI, but none is as apparent as when the AI identifies itself. At the start of many student posts are the unmistakable hallmarks of ChatGPT, saying things like “Sure, I can help you answer that. Here are 3 ways you could reply,” and the student doesn’t even bother removing this.
This bothers me.
Why take a course if you don’t intend to engage in and learn the content yourself?
Why reply to optional questions if you don’t intend to provide your own effort?
What amount of the AI responses are these people absorbing, if it is actually used as a learning aid in some way?
Why not, at the very least, edit things to remove the generative AI’s voice and maybe add your own?
Why distract myself and other learners in your environment with your low-value AI response?
There’s already a lot of research and reports about how AI is making people dumber, but I admit that I expected better from people taking self-led courses, where much of the engagement is entirely optional anyway.
I began to report many of the very obviously AI-generated answers and submissions. I occasionally reply to others who ask why they bother to post. I’m there to learn—I wonder why they’ve shown up?