Contemplating & Exploring Ethical Considerations of Large Language Models [Resou
Contemplating & Exploring Ethical Considerations of Large Language Models [Resource]
C. Anneke Snyder
What You Will Learn in This Section
In this section, you will learn about the importance of ethical considerations and implications of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), particularly Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT. This section highlights that LLMs are not inherently good or bad. Instead, the importance of user engagement in ethical practices is emphasized to ensure responsible use of these tools.
Ethical considerations for educators include attention to student privacy, expectations, and consequences—all of which should clearly be defined in syllabus statements, classroom policies, or institutional statements. Meanwhile, ethical implications exist involving varying ethical standards for how people approach LLMs differently, how human and machine bias influence GenAI, and how style guides differ on citing information garnered from ChatGPT.
After reading this section, you should be able to articulate your own ethical queries and concerns related to LLMs, such as ChatGPT, both as a general user and an educator.
This chapter is divided in the following sections. Click the links below to jump down to a section that interests you:
- Author Reflection: How has my understanding of AI evolved?
- Why do ethical considerations and implications of LLMs matter in the era of generative AI?
- How can ethical decision-making be cultivated among students in the context of LLMs?
- Can a course be ChatGPT-proof?
- What are some biases inherent in generative AI?
- Can ChatGPT be cited?
- How can pedagogical approaches reflect individual ethical beliefs and practices?
- How can educators broach topics of ethical generative AI-use with students?
- What ethical considerations should we share with our students about LLMs?
Author Reflection: How has my understanding of AI evolved?
As a teacher, Ph.D. candidate, and member of my institution’s honor council, I believed I had a clear understanding and approach to ethical practices concerning learning and research. However, upon writing this section, I found myself questioning years of standardized approaches to research and pedagogy: Who or what is an author? Can text be considered plagiarism if a writer is editing machine-generated output? Is it possible for instructors to create assignments that remove student inclination to use LLMs? And should they even do so in the first place? I am not sure that I have answers to my questions; I am not even certain that I am asking all the right questions. However, I am confident that GenAI, and specifically ChatGPT, is not going away. Rather than defining this technology as inherently good or bad, we should consider how to adapt and adjust our understanding of ethical behavior as we witness the genesis and integration of GenAI into our daily lives. Ethical behavior is not static and is largely dependent on dynamic cultural norms, behaviors, and practices. As some