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1 Nigerian Students Turn to aI For Tests Answers, Lecturers Raise Alarm

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing education while making finding out more available but also stimulating debates on its effect.

While trainees hail AI tools like ChatGPT for boosting their knowing experience, lecturers are raising concerns about the growing dependence on AI, which they argue fosters laziness and weakens academic integrity, especially with many trainees not able to defend their assignments or given works.

Prof. Isaac Nwaogwugwu, a speaker at the University of Lagos, in an interview with Nairametrics, revealed frustration over the growing reliance on AI-generated actions amongst students recounting a recent experience he had.

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"I offered an assignment to my MBA students, and out of over 100 trainees, about 40% sent the precise very same answers. These students did not even understand each other, however they all utilized the very same AI tool to produce their actions," he stated.

He kept in mind that this pattern is widespread amongst both undergraduate and postgraduate trainees however is especially worrying in part-time and range knowing programs.

"AI is a serious challenge when it comes to projects. Many trainees no longer think critically-they simply go on the internet, create responses, and submit," he added.

Surprisingly, some speakers are likewise accused of over-relying on AI, setting a cycle where both teachers and trainees turn to AI for convenience instead of intellectual rigor.

This debate raises vital concerns about the role of AI in scholastic stability and student development.

According to a UNESCO report, while ChatGPT reached 100 million monthly active users in January 2023, just one nation had launched policies on generative AI as of July 2023.

As of December 2024, ChatGPT had over 300 million people using the AI chatbot every week and tandme.co.uk 1 billion messages sent out every day worldwide.

Decline of academic rigor

University lecturers are progressively concerned about trainees sending AI-generated projects without really comprehending the content.

Dr. Felix Echekoba, a speaker at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, revealed his issues to Nairametrics about students increasingly counting on ChatGPT, just to have a hard time with answering standard questions when evaluated.

"Many trainees copy from ChatGPT and submit sleek tasks, however when asked fundamental concerns, they go blank. It's disappointing since education is about finding out, not simply passing courses," he said.

- Prof. Nwaogwugwu mentioned that the increasing number of superior graduates can not be entirely associated to AI but confessed that even use these tools.
"A top-notch trainee is a top-notch student, AI or not, but that does not mean they do not cheat. The benefits of AI might be peripheral, however it is making trainees dependent and less analytical," he said.

- Another lecturer, Dr. Ereke, from Ebonyi State University, raised a various concern that some speakers themselves are guilty of the very same practice.
"It's not simply trainees using AI lazily. Some speakers, out of their own laziness, create lesson notes, course describes, marking plans, and even examination concerns with AI without reviewing them. Students in turn use AI to create responses. It's a cycle of laziness and it is eliminating genuine knowing," he regreted.

Students' perspectives on use

Students, on the other hand, say AI has actually enhanced their knowing experience by making scholastic products more understandable and available.

- Eniola Arowosafe, a 300-level Business Administration student at Unilag, shared how AI has considerably aided her learning by breaking down complex terms and providing summaries of lengthy texts.
"AI assisted me understand things more quickly, particularly when dealing with intricate subjects," she described.

However, she remembered an instance when she used AI to send her project, just for her lecturer to immediately recognize that it was created by ChatGPT and decline it. Eniola noted that it was a good-bad impact.

- Bryan Okwuba, who just recently finished with a top-notch degree in Pharmacy Technology from the University of Lagos, securely thinks that his academic success wasn't due to any AI tool. He associates his outstanding grades to actively interesting by asking concerns and focusing on locations that speakers emphasize in class, as they are frequently reflected in test concerns.
"It's everything about being present, focusing, and taking advantage of the wealth of knowledge shared by my coworkers," he stated,

- Tunde Awoshita, a final-year marketing student at UNIZIK, confesses to occasionally copying directly from ChatGPT when facing numerous due dates.
"To be truthful, there are times I copy straight from ChatGPT when I have numerous deadlines, and I understand I'm guilty of that, many times the speakers do not get to review them, however AI has likewise helped me discover much faster."

Balancing AI's role in education

Experts think the option lies in AI literacy