CHAT GPT AND THE FUTURE OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: POSSIBILITIES AND CHALLENGES

Abstract

The maintenance of academic integrity plays an important part in higher education. However, with the emergence of artificial intelligence, this concept is frequently challenged. Thus, this study aimed to discover the instructors’ perceptions of how Chat GPT can be used in education while preserving academic integrity. In order to achieve the abovementioned aim, a qualitative method was employed with 12 instructors who teach in the specialty “6B01702: Foreign language: two foreign languages” in one private university in Kazakhstan. The researchers conducted semi-structured interviews, each of which lasting between 25 to 35 minutes. The deductive type of analysis based on Hatch’s framework was chosen to interpret the obtained information, and after that, the findings were compared with other existing works in the same field. Overall, it was identified that most instructors are active users of Chat GPT. The common purposes included generating ideas, designing exam questions, checking essays, and creating evaluating rubrics. However, the instructors expressed negative opinions regarding the students’ use of this application, and they were penalized in case artificial intelligence was detected. That is why, instructors carefully monitored their students’ adherence to academic integrity by checking their works in the Turnitin application and assigning authentic tasks to diminish the chances of using artificial intelligence. The theoretical significance of this work lies in showing the advantages and disadvantages of using Chat GPT from the instructors’ points of view. As regards the practical importance, it should be noted that these findings can serve as a basis for developing specific policies about the implementation of Chat GPT in the educational sphere.