GenAI (like ChatGPT) is a tool that can help you learn by explaining concepts, summarising information, and testing your knowledge; BUT—it’s not a shortcut for assessments!
Answering your assessments is more than just finding the right answers to the questions. We use these answers to determine that you have right the knowledge and skill to hold your qualification and work in animal care. If your answers are all made by AI… we cannot be sure that you have the knowledge to do your own job…. And how does that help the animals in your care? As your training provider we must prove that the evidence you submit for grading is authentic – that it is actually your own work.
When you use GenAI it, it must be ethical, disclosed and transparent. This is both for your safety and for your academic integrity. Generative AI platforms are owned by private companies who may use the inputted information for commercial purposes. It can be bias in the information it presents. Ethical use helps you stay safe from unintended, or even unknown consequences and ensures that the answers you present for your assessments are good, authentic examples of your own knowledge and skill.
All submitted assessments are checked for the use of GenAI with TurnItIn and its use is considered plagiarism if it exceeds the minimum acceptable allowances. There are academic penalties for unethical use of AI, so how can we help you get it right?
We’ve put together some tips on this to ensure you stay on the right side of academic integrity.
🚫 What NOT to do with GenAI:
❌ Do not copy AI-generated answers into assessments
❌ Do not submit AI text as your own work
❌ Do not use AI to avoid thinking for yourself
❌ Do not input personal information or data
❌ Do not ask it to use complicated phrases or words that you yourself don’t understand
✅ What you CAN use GenAI for:
✔ Summarising complex topics into simpler language
✔ Test your knowledge with practice questions
✔ Explain tricky concepts in different ways
✔ Act as an educator or mentor and help you learn
✔ Help you breakdown questions to improve how you interpret and understand then
✔ Get feedback on your own answers
SO, HOW DO YOU USE AI THE RIGHT WAY?
- Understand first, then ask
Before turning to AI, try explaining a concept in your own words. If you get stuck, check your learning resources, talk to your mentors and use AI to clarify what it is YOU know.
Example Prompt:
“I’m studying [topic]. Is my understanding of this right? <Insert your own explanation>. Can you explain it in simple terms and give me an example?”
- Make AI work for you, not the other way around
Ask AI to guide your learning rather than just giving you answers. NEVER as it to give you answers.
Example Prompt:
“Can you quiz me on [topic] and give hints instead of just telling me the answers?”
- Always put answers in your own words
If AI gives you an explanation, read it, CLOSE THE CHAT and rewrite it from memory as if you were explaining it to a friend. Have you tried saying it out loud and use voice to text to capture your thoughts? Do it, it can make assessment writing so much faster!
Compare YOUR understanding to your learning resources and the AI response -> If your response sounds like you and gets the same message across – you’re nailing it!
- Use AI for feedback, not final answers
Write your own response first, then ask AI for improvement suggestions.
Example Prompt:
“Here’s my answer on [topic]. Can you check if it is factual or if I need to make it clearer? Do not rewrite the question for me”
- Be critical of what GenAI tells you
Don’t take the responses for gospel. AI can and will make mistakes! These are called hallucinations, which describes the result when GenAI fabricates or generates false information. Try it yourself! Read its responses and ask yourself, is this true? Are the sources it has told me it used credible and real? Is this information different to my learners guide or what I know? Just because it sounds convincing, doesn’t mean it is. The prompts you use can help reduce the incidence of hallucinations so think carefully about what you are asking it to do.
Example Prompts:
“How many R’s in the word strawberry?”
“How times does the letter R appear in the word strawberry?”
- Be honest about your learning and sources
Your future patients need YOU to understand the learning materials—not a robot! If AI is doing all the thinking for you, how can you be ready for real-life veterinary nursing?
Reference the use of AI in your answers where you have used it to support your learning.
Example Prompt:
“Can you please generate a Harvard style citation and reference for this conversation. I want to show that I am not plagiarising this and am transparent about my use of AI in my assessment”
You can use GenAI to generate your referencing for you (now that’s smart!). The other thing you can do is *share* the AI Chat. In ChatGPT there is a share button at the top right of the screen. This generates a link you can add to your reference list and allows us to see your actual chat transcript. This is one verifiable way you can prove that you used GenAI ethically and your answers are in fact your own words.
💡 SUGGESTED AI PROMPTS FOR ETHICAL LEARNING
“Explain [topic] in three sentences like I’m new to vet nursing”
“What’s a common mistake students make when learning about [topic]?”
“Help me break down [topic] into simple steps”
“Can you ask me five quiz questions about [topic]?”
“Act as a veterinary nurse educator in Australia. Explain [topic] at a beginner level, then test my understanding with a question”
“Challenge my understanding of [topic]. Ask me tricky questions or common misconceptions that students have”
“I don’t fully understand this question: [insert question]. Can you rephrase it and explain what it’s asking me to do?”
“Here’s my answer to [question]. Can you check if it’s factual, clear, and relevant. Do not rewrite my answer. Before answering, repeat my instructions in your own words to confirm you’ve understood correctly”
“I’m studying [topic]. What are the most important things I should focus on, and are there any areas students often struggle with?”
“Can you please generate a Harvard style citation and reference for this conversation. I want to show that I am not plagiarising this and am transparent about my use of AI in my assessment?”
🌟 FINAL REMINDER
GenAI is here to support your learning. It’s another tool you can use to help grow what you know. Don’t let it do all the knowing for you!
Your assessments are evidence of your own understanding of the concepts, theories, actions and tasks of animal care and Veterinary Nursing and what we use to prove that you have earned and are entitled to your qualification when you graduate. Your knowledge and skill is what matters most.
Use AI wisely, think critically, and always put information into your own words. Tell it how you want it to help you, explain the role you want it to take to SUPPORT your learning but do not let it DO THE LEARNING FOR YOU.
Using GenAI as a pseudo-mentor or educator to help review your answers and give advice on how to present and clarify what you know is perfectly OK!!
The process of reviewing answers with GenAI will help you remember what you know. It’s a win-win! And this way….. you’ll be the best veterinary nurse you can be! 🐾💙
We’ve recently updated the student handbook on the guidelines for the use of GenAI in assessments, so head on over and check it out: https://vetnursetraining.com.au/study-help/referencing/guide-to-plagiarism-research-referencing/ethical-use-of-ai-in-study/
Here is a quick youtube video that explains ethical use of AI: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyf3YVWx6nw
Happy, safe studying!