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LIS 105: Information Literacy Basics

This guide accompanies LIS 105: Information Literacy Basics at Truman College.

Week 10: Current Issues in Information Part II

The last content section for this course will discuss AI (artificial intelligence) and tools such as ChatGPT in relation to information literacy, academic work, and library research. 

Click on the topics above to access content.

What is AI (Artificial Intelligence)? 

AI or artificial intelligence refers to the use of computers, software, and machines to mimic human thought processes and decision making. Examples include:

  • search engines such as Google, which use natural language processing (nlp) to retrieve search results
  • recommendation functions and targeted advertising based on search or watch histories, as found on Google, Netflix, YouTube, etc.
  • understanding human speech through nlp as with Alexa and Siri, and human actions as with Zoom's recognition of hand gestures
  • facial recognition software
  • tools such as Google Translate and ChatGPT

PBS Newshour: What led to the OpenAI leadership shakeup and what it means for the future of AI 

By Geoff Bennett, Karina Cuevas, and Dorothy Hastings, Nov 20, 2023 6:45 PM EST

(Some) Pros and Cons of AI in Higher Education

PROS CONS
AI can provide personalized content and feedback to enhance student learning, as well as tailored tutoring, based on individual learning strengths and preferences. AI content generators increase the chances of students cheating and plagiarizing.

Learning using AI can be interactive, providing students with dynamic content to keep their attention.

 AI content generators can produce incorrect information, known as "hallucinations."
AI can provide adaptive learning opportunities by creating individual paths for students to learn at their own pace. AI algorithms "scraping" the web for content may violate privacy and copyright (is it really "fair use"?). Concerns include recordings of voice data, individuals' online activity, geographic location data, and video data being used as surveillance.
AI can facilitate collaborative learning between classmates, with virtual and augmented reality applications. AI trained on biased information perpetuates existing biases. 
AI can provide enhanced accessibility to course content for students with disabilities.

Exclusive use of AI in education can increase barriers for already disadvantaged students who do not have equal access to technology.
AI can collect and analyze student data to help instructors improve lessons and outcomes. AI recommendation tools are geared toward keeping users engaged online, suggesting more of the same extreme content and biases that people favor (remember confirmation bias from week 6?), perpetuating information bubbles and misinformation.

 

Overview: What is ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that uses natural language processing (nlp) techniques to respond to user-generated prompts. Put simply: You ask ChatGPT a question or provide a prompt, it replies using natural language. 

What do you need to know about ChatGPT?

OpenAI (the company that designed ChatGPT) collects a lot of data from ChatGPT users.

  • The privacy policy states that this data can be shared with third-party vendors, law enforcement, affiliates, and other users.
  • While you can request to have your ChatGPT account deleted, the prompts that you input into ChatGPT cannot be deleted. If you were to ask ChatGPT about sensitive or controversial topics, this data cannot be removed.

TIP: Before using ChatGPT (if you plan to do so), please read over the privacy policy and consider opting out if you do not feel comfortable having your data collected and shared as outlined in the policy.

ChatGPT is not always trustworthy

  • ChatGPT was trained using a massive dataset of text written by humans that was pulled from the Internet.
  • Thus, the responses can reflect the biases of the humans who wrote the text used in the training dataset.
  • ChatGPT is not connected to the Internet and the data used to train it was collected prior to 2021.
    • According to the FAQs, ChatGPT “has limited knowledge of world and events after 2021 and may also occasionally produce harmful instructions or biased content” (Natalie, para. 4).

ChatGPT makes stuff up!

What can ChatGPT do?

  • Write essays
  • Write lesson plans
  • Design an outline for a class syllabus
  • Write learning objectives
  • Design quiz/test questions
  • Write a script for a podcast or video
  • Design a rubric
  • Provide directions for a learning activity
  • Write emails to students

What else can ChatGPT do?

  • Design (and attempts to solve) math and science word problems.
  • Role play class scenarios.
  • Remix student work.
  • Provide writing examples.
  • Give students feedback on their writing.
  • Provide tips on how to personalize/differentiate learning.
  • Generate discussion prompts for class.
  • Provide one-on-one tutoring or coaching.
  • Write letters to parents (K-12 teachers) or students.

*These ideas and more from this Twitter thread by Robert Petitto, this Twitter thread by Matt Miller, and Ditch That Textbook.

What can ChatGPT NOT do? (Yet)

  • Write about anything that happened after 2021
  • Provide non-text based responses
  • Make predictions about future events
  • Browse or summarize content from the internet
  • Draw connections between content and visual materials

Adapted from Overview of ChatGPT by Katie Ediger, August 2023.

Further Reading