AI in teaching and learning

How to use generative AI applications?

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Recommended in Tampere universities

As a rule, the use of AI based applications is allowed, but follow the recommendations of the Tampere Universities community:

  • Students are not expected to use external online services that require registering as a user.
  • In each course, students and teachers should consider together how artificial intelligence is used as part of their studies and how its use is expressed in the outputs.
    • If a student uses a language model in an assignment or a thesis, for example, as part of language editing, this must always be mentioned.
    • Students are always responsible for the content of their own study assignments and the materials subject to evaluation
    • Students’ source-critical thinking is supported.
  • Teachers should estimate whether the possible use of a language model has created a need to develop the current way of assessing learning outcomes.
  • TAU: In maturity tests, the use of AI applications is not allowed

Read all the recommendations:

Checklist for teachers

Tampere Universities welcomes the use of AI-based applications and language models in research and teaching. The potential of new technologies is typically overestimated in the short term and underestimated in the long term. As AI systems are constantly evolving tools that will be used in working life in the future, it is important for both teachers and students to be familiar with the use of AI applications. 

  • Discover the potential of AI. To recognize the possibilities of using AI and to agree on the use of AI with your students in your courses, it is good to familiarize yourself with AI applications and their use. The higher education community has a Copilot AI chat available. 
  • Agree on the use of AI in studies on a course-by-course basis. Inform, justify and discuss the use of AI with students at the beginning of the course. Emphasize that AI is a tool, not a substitute for your own thinking and skills. Invite students to record prompts and ask to be seen if necessary.
  • Use the Copilot AI chat by logging in with a TUNI ID. Copilot is a secure and privacy-protected AI chat, which is available for staff and students over 18 years old. Copilot should not be used to handle personal data or confidential information. Students cannot be required to register for external AI services. 
  • Promote students’ source criticism and copyright awareness. Remind students to mention the use of AI in their learning tasks and describe how it has been used. Also remind students that they are always responsible for the content of the text they return. 
  • Do not log in to services outside the organization using the TUNI ID. Registration for services with a TUNI email address is allowed within the limits of the performance of your duties. However, do not use the same password as for TUNI services. 
  • Do not enter students’ work, personal data or other confidential information into an external service. Data security and privacy are also important when using AI. Follow the security requirements and privacy policies of the higher education community. 
  • Utilize AI as a tool in the planning and ideation of teaching. AI can help you vary tasks and questions, generate summaries and translations, come up with examples and model answers, and create images and visualizations. 
  • Develop the assessment of learning in a way enabled by AI. You should assess whether the potential use of the language model has created a need to develop the current way of assessing learning. For example, you can build applied, discussing, evaluating and opposing tasks where the use of AI is not beneficial or where the answer given by AI is critically evaluated. 
  • Teachers of Tampere University: Remind students that the use of AI in writing the summary of the maturity essay is not allowed. The policy applies to both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. 

Instructions for teachers

Artificial intelligence can be utilized in education either as an aid to teachers or as a tool for students. The recommended approach is to use the AI chatbot available to the higher education community, that is Copilot. In Copilot, data privacy and security are significantly better than in free consumer versions. You can log in to this AI application using your TUNI account, and the information processed does not get stored by the AI nor is it used to train the AI. Additionally, messages exchanged with the AI automatically expire at the end of the conversation session. However, please note that Copilot should not be used to handle personal data or confidential information. Processing internal information is allowed.

It is forbidden to

  • Require students to register to external services to complete assignments or courses. If external AI application requiring registration is used, an alternative method must be offered to students. Primarily select tools that are available in Tampere Universities
  • Signing into external services using the TUNI email. Registering for services with a TUNI email address is allowed only within the limits of performing work duties. In this case, however, do not use the same password as in the TUNI-services.
  • Entering students’ coursework, personal details, or other confidential information to an external service
  • Presenting a text, image, or other work as one’s own
  • Using an AI application to write the abstract of the bachelor’s thesis or the maturity test (in Tampere University)

1. AI for teachers

Teachers may benefit from using AI as a tool in the planning of teaching and coming up with ideas, for example, in the following ways:

  • Varying your assignments and questions and making them suitable for different levels: You may ask AI to vary questions on the same topic, but from different perspectives and for different levels.
  • You may also use AI to come up with examples or producing answers for the questions and assignments. AI is good at structuring texts and writing summaries as, for example, descriptions or introductions to the topics you are discussing in class.
  • Translations: AI applications can also translate your text into different languages. You can use AI to help spelling and the preparation and checking of translations.

For practical tips on how to use AI to prepare for teaching, see Digital toolkit

2. AI in teaching and learning

The teacher of the course decides on the use of artificial intelligence in each course. The use of AI should always be agreed on a course-by-course basis, as the possibilities for using AI vary according to the learning objectives, content, learning tasks and assessment methods of each course. Inform and discuss the use of AI with students at the beginning of the course. Instructions on how to use AI should be included with the other instructions for the course or, for example, published on the course’s Moodle area. For example, consider whether the following uses can be allowed and encouraged in your course:

  • Source critical search for information using AI when the source is cited
  • Using AI to help spelling, reviewing and preparing translations
  • Preparing and brainstorming a text with AI, and explaining this part and citing it as a source
  • Using AI as a coach to challenge students’ thinking

Take following issues into account:
Source criticism and copyright

  • AI-generated text may be incorrect or referenced to non-existent sources. Source criticism and critical evaluation of the answer is important and students are always responsible for the content of their text. The use of artificial intelligence is most useful when it produces text and ideas on a topic that you already have enough expertise to be able to assess the correctness and relevance of the answer.
  • The source material on which the language model is trained may be copyright material. The use of AI as source material should be treated with caution.

Information retrieval and citation

  • AI applications are not really search engines, but they can be used for a information searching. Check out the Library’s Guide to Information searching and AI, for information on topics such as AI citation, academic use cases, and ethical and evaluative use.

Responsibility

  • If a student uses a language model in an assignment or a thesis, for example, as part of language editing, this must always be mentioned.
  • Students are always responsible for the content of the texts they submit for assessment. While writing this text, the major challenge related to language models is that they can produce texts that look very competent on the surface, but contain factual errors or even contradictions.

Information security and data protection

  • Do not enter personal or confidential data into AI applications
  • General data protection and data security guidelines also apply to the use of AI, and when accessing, experimenting with and using AI applications, you should take into account the following points
  • See the AI and information security guide lock for information on topics such as login and rules of use.
  • On the page Information security and data protection in teaching lock you will find instructions on how to use third-party software. These guidelines also apply to AI applications.

Supervision and identifying the use of AI

  • It is commonly assumed that a text produced by AI is identified with originality checking systems, such as Turnitin, which includes an AI detection feature for texts written in English. However, research shows that AI can create unique content that cannot always be detected by such systems. As before, Turnitin helps with originality checking and can highlight points in the text that can be discussed with the student in a guidance situation.
  • It may be necessary to formulate assignments and completion methods in such a way that the use of AI does not benefit completing the assignments or that artificial intelligence cannot replace the student’s own thinking.
  • For example, the following assignments and methods can support this:
    • Applied tasks that require familiarisation, understanding and application of what has been read about a topic
    • Study circles, panel discussions, group work, Flipped Learning
    • Presentations and acting as an opponent, video presentations, posters
    • Assessing and critiquing an answer given by AI
  • If assessing learning in a course unit requires supervised exams, use TUNI EXAM rooms where access to AI programmes has been technically blocked from the EXAM computers.

Training and self-study materials