Ethical Discussions
These activity prompts, all written by Traci Gardner, help students explore ethical considerations related to AI in writing.
Collaboration & Group Work
AI Disclosure in Agency Communication
Students discuss the use of disclosure statements for AI-generated content. Students consider how to craft clear and honest statements, enhancing their technical writing skills and understanding of AI ethics.
The Ethical Dilemma of AI and the Absent Team Member
This activity explores an ethical scenario involving team documentation when a member is absent. Students must evaluate various options and their implications for accuracy, deadlines, and safety.
The 29 AIs of Washington, D.C.
Students explore how AI systems influence government decision-making and their impact on daily life. By creating infographics, students will explain AI’s role in practical decisions and draw conclusions about AI-based decision-making effects.
Interview with ChatGPT
Students explore the abilities and limitations of AI chatbots like ChatGPT through creating and recording a podcast interview. Students will analyze the role of AI in information-providing contexts and compare it with human expertise.
Highway to Autonomy
This activity involves students exploring the technology, benefits, and ethical concerns of autonomous vehicles (AVs). Through research and analysis, students will create a policy proposal addressing a specific AV concern and advocate for their proposal.
AI-Powered vs. Human Translators
This project helps students compare AI-powered translators with human translation accuracy and apply these tools in real-time conversations. They will develop an understanding of AI in language processing and evaluate its effectiveness in facilitating communication.
AI and Art
This project engages students in exploring artistic styles and how AI neural networks can learn and apply these styles to create new artwork. Through this activity, students enhance their understanding of AI, machine learning, and artistic expression.
Design an AI Agent
This project guides students in designing an AI agent to effectively interact with humans in various disciplines. They will explore the current use of AI in specific fields and develop their own AI agents to address real-world tasks or challenges.
Using AI to Solve Environmental Problems
Students explore AI applications for addressing environmental challenges. They learn about AI’s role in sustainability and propose AI-powered solutions to local environmental issues, enhancing their research, critical thinking, and presentation skills.
Developing a Critical Eye
This project teaches students to critically evaluate information in the age of AI to identify, create, and disseminate information and disinformation.
Co-Creating an AI Policy
The activity engages students in exploring the ethical considerations and policy implications of AI technology.
Interview a Chatbot
This activity introduces students to AI and its applications in writing as they interview a chatbot to learn more about how the AI tool works.
Prompt-a-thon
Students engage in a creative “Prompt-a-thon” to explore AI-generated writing prompts that focus on wicked problems facing the local community.
Uncovering Deepfakes
Students will analyze various examples of deepfakes, discuss their implications, and learn to apply strategies to discern authentic from manipulated content.
Help With Model UN/Model Congress Drafts Using an AI Chatbot
Students participate in a simulated Model UN or Model Congress, where they draft and debate resolutions. The activity emphasizes persuasive writing, research skills, and the ability to articulate and defend positions clearly and effectively.
AI as Team Coach
Teams receive AI-generated coaching to improve their collaborative writing process. The AI provides insights on group dynamics, task allocation, and communication, enhancing the overall quality of the team’s written output.
Mastering Structure and Organization in Writing
This assignment engages students in dynamic writing exercises, emphasizes peer review for constructive feedback and enhances their technical writing skills and collaborative abilities.
Guiding Students to Assess the Merits of Artificial Intelligence Tools
Students critically evaluate the outputs of AI tools, such as ChatGPT, by comparing them to human-generated responses.
Collaborative Research with ChatGPT
Students conduct a rhetorical analysis of the outputs generated by ChatGPT, critically evaluating the AI’s responses and the effectiveness of their own writing in eliciting meaningful and accurate information.
Rhetorical Prompt Engineering
Students develop their rhetorical analysis skills by examining and creating prompts, learning how to craft questions that elicit thoughtful and effective responses. Their revision work focuses on documents related to the Three Mile Island nuclear disaster.
Writing for Career Readiness: Engaging ChatGPT to Develop Resume Bullet Points
Students learn how to tailor their resume bullet points to specific job descriptions and then participate in a peer review process with class members.
Speaking and Thinking for Ourselves
Students reflect on ethical considerations in the context of communication and technology by comparing ideas in an Immanual Kant essay to current events related to artificial intelligence.
Wrestling with A.I.
Students first read and reflect on articles on the social implications of AI and then participate in class discussions of the ethical dilemmas that AI presents. Additional ideas in the chapter include asking students to play with predictive text and to write position statements on the use of AI.