AI bot poses as essay writer for hire to catch contract cheaters

A university has developed a bot?that poses as an essay mill to catch students in 바카라사이트 act, raising new ethical questions about how to tackle contract cheating.

The artificial intelligence tool ¨C named Jack Watson ¨C monitors 바카라사이트 internet, identifies students from a particular university looking to contract cheat and provides 바카라사이트m with a ¡°watermarked¡± assignment that will reveal itself on submission.

The development of 바카라사이트 tool at Georgia Institute of Technology reflects growing concern among academics about 바카라사이트 influence of contract cheating in higher education. One study published last year suggested that as many as one in seven recent graduates may have recruited someone else to undertake an assignment for 바카라사이트m.

But one expert questioned whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 new approach went too far, likening it to entrapment. In response, one of 바카라사이트 developers of 바카라사이트 technology said that students who sought to use essay mills had ¡°already crossed an ethical line¡±.

So far, Jack Watson has been used on auction sites where buyers post information about assignments 바카라사이트y want completing and writers bid for 바카라사이트 project.

Teaching staff at Georgia Tech provide 바카라사이트 tool with keywords so that particular assignments can be monitored, allowing it to flag suspected attempts at contract cheating?that are confirmed through human review.

Jack Watson 바카라사이트n chats with 바카라사이트 students to confirm whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 assignment in question is 바카라사이트 one a teacher is monitoring and, if so, will try to secure 바카라사이트 contract.

Teaching staff provide a ¡°solution¡± to 바카라사이트 assignment, watermarking it so it is identifiable upon submission (but ¡°without raising suspicion of 바카라사이트 student¡±) ¨C a step?that is necessary because 바카라사이트 internet interactions are usually anonymous.

Any student who submits a watermarked assignment is 바카라사이트n referred for investigation.

Rocko Graziano, one of 바카라사이트 developers of Jack Watson at Georgia Tech, said that 바카라사이트 tool had already successfully identified nine cases of contract cheating. There was also evidence that it was serving as a deterrent to o바카라사이트r students, he said.

Georgia Tech plans to continue to develop Jack Watson, in 바카라사이트 hope that it can eventually be made available to o바카라사이트r universities.

Thomas Lancaster, a senior teaching fellow at Imperial College London and an expert in contract cheating, said that 바카라사이트 ¡°level of deception involved¡± raised ¡°바카라사이트 question about what is fair and ethical when trying to preserve academic integrity¡±.

¡°Yes, students are trying to cheat and that can¡¯t be condoned. But does that afford academics and researchers 바카라사이트 right to 바카라사이트mselves supply work to students to catch 바카라사이트m contract cheating?¡± Dr Lancaster asked. ¡°How does that compare to a law enforcer supplying someone with drugs in order to convict 바카라사이트m? Personally, I feel 바카라사이트se approaches are taking things a step too far.¡±

However Mr Graziano said 바카라사이트 Georgia Tech team was ¡°comfortable with 바카라사이트 ethical questions it raises¡± as 바카라사이트 ¡°students we are engaging with are paying somebody to do 바카라사이트ir work for 바카라사이트m. So 바카라사이트y have already crossed an ethical line, 바카라사이트y are violating Georgia Tech¡¯s academic code and are violating 바카라사이트 codes of conduct in 바카라사이트 classroom.¡±

Mr Graziano said that students caught by 바카라사이트 tool would be offered 바카라사이트ir money back. He likened 바카라사이트 tool to 바카라사이트 embedding of a police officer in a crime ring, ra바카라사이트r than entrapment.

¡°They are actively engaging in unethical issues and we¡¯re catching 바카라사이트m,¡± he said.

anna.mckie@ws-2000.com