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Artificial Intelligence and ChatGPT: Resources for Students

ChatGPT and Other Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI)

Generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) apps are designed to provide human-like responses to user prompts. Program outputs can be textual, audio, visual, or computer code depending on the generative AI app. Text-based generative AI programs, such as ChatGPT, are trained on large amounts of data from the internet which can range from reliable to highly dubious sources of information. As such, users should be critically vigilant when using text-based generative AI. This guide will assist students in making informed decisions about their use of generative AI in their academic work. For more information and best practices related to use of generative AI as a student visit the University of Windsor's Generative AI website.

 

Can I use Generative AI for my coursework?

Check your course syllabus. Your instructor is responsible for the learning environment in your course and they must communicate any restrictions on the use of generative AI in their course syllabus (Bylaw 54 for undergraduate students and Bylaw 55 for graduate students). Your instructor can choose to not allow the use of generative AI apps for any course work, or they may permit use for some assignments and not others, or they may allow responsible use on all assignments. If you do not see any restrictions on the use of generative AI in your syllabus, then the default position is that responsible use of generative AI is accepted for all course assignments (UWindsor Senate, 10 May 2024).

Should I use Generative AI for my coursework?


If it's allowed in your course syllabus, you can decide. You are responsible for the work you submit. Generative AI is not a substitute for your own learning and understanding of course material. Anytime that you use information that is not drawn from your conclusions or that is not general knowledge, you must cite where that information came from. This includes passages created by generative AI apps. Copying and pasting or paraphrasing outputs of generative AI and passing them off as your own is academically dishonest. You must cite passages that were created by or paraphrased from a generative AI app. See below for information on how to cite generative AI tools in common writing style guides. Even when the use of generative AI is permitted for all course assignments, always use generative AI responsibly.

If it's prohibited or restricted in your course syllabus, you must adhere to your instructor's decision. If your instructor has determined that generative AI apps are not acceptable in a course or for particular assessments and they have communicated that to you in your course syllabus, you must follow their direction. Use of generative AI apps where your instructor has determined that they are not allowed constitutes the use of an unauthorized aid and is considered cheating (Bylaw 31). If generative AI is allowed for some assessments and not for others, be sure that you understand which assessments you are allowed to use it for and always use generative AI responsibly.

As with any other time that you have doubts or concerns about anything related to your course, ask your instructor if you have any questions about the use of generative AI for course assessments or for any other purpose related to the course.

How do I cite Generative AI if I have used it?

If you have verified that you are allowed to use generative AI in your assignments, you must cite it either according to your instructors’ instructions or, if none are given, according to the style guide you are using.  You should also acknowledge if you used it to help you brainstorm or outline your assignment even if you don’t use ideas or text generated by AI. Best practice recommends saving a copy of your transcript by taking a screenshot, saving a permalink, or saving it as a webpage file. ChatGPT conversations are now linkable but not reproducible. Some citation guides recommend including the full-text transcript of your ChatGPT conversation as an appendix to your assignment. If this is not feasible, you should at least write down or make note of the prompt you entered as some instructors may require you to include it in the citation.

Citation style for generative AI in common style guides:

APA (7th Edition)

You should note somewhere in your paper, usually in the methods or a comparable section, that you have used ChatGPT in your assignment and what you used it for. You should also include the text of your chat as an appendix to your assignment. Although nonretrievable data or quotations are normally cited as personal communications, there is no person communicating in a ChatGPT conversation. Therefore, you must credit the creator of the software with both an in-text citation and entry in your reference list. 

In Text Citation
(Name of Software Company, Year)
e.g. (OpenAI, 2024).

Reference List
Author/Name of Software company. (Year). Software Title (version). [type of software – in the case of ChatGPT - Large language model]. URL.
e.g. OpenAI. (2024). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat.
 

Chicago 17th Edition

Endnote or footnote
Text generated by [source], [Author], [Date]. URL.
e.g. 1. Text generated by ChatGPT, OpenAI, September 18, 2023. https://chat.openai.com/chat.

If you haven’t included the prompt given to ChatGPT in the body of your assignment, you should include that in the reference.
e.g. 1. ChatGPT, response to “Write me a song about Taylor Swift,” OpenAI, September 18, 2024.

You should also note if you've edited the content, e.g. "edited for style and content"

Author-Date
In Text Citation
(Author, Date)
e.g. (ChatGPT, September 18, 2024).
Considered a personal communication in Chicago style because chats are not saved and the reader won't be able to view the full text of your chat, do not include a ChatGPT citation in your bibliography or reference list. If you use a browser extension such as ShareGPT or A.I. ARchives that allows you to save a publicly available link to your chat, you should include an entry in your bibliography or reference list.
 

MLA

In-text Citation
(“First few words of the prompt given to ChatGPT”)
e.g. (“Write me a song”)

Works Cited List
“Description of prompt given to ChatGPT” prompt. Software title, Version, Name of Software Company, Date, URL.
e.g. “Write me a song about Taylor Swift” prompt. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 18 Sep. 2024, https://chat.openai.com/chat.


Vancouver

The text of your document must include the type of communication, the name of the tool and its creator, and the date in parentheses. 
e.g. In an online chat with Open AI's ChatGPT AI language model (17 September 2024). 

 

IEEE

The use of content generated by artificial intelligence (AI) in an article shall be disclosed in the acknowledgements section of any article submitted to an IEEE publication. The AI system used should be identified, and specific sections of the article that use AI-generated content shall be identified and accompanied by a brief explanation regarding the level at with the AI system was used to generate the content. 
 

Best Practices for Using Generative AI Responsibly


As with any other tool you use to help you understand course materials and complete course assessments, generative AI apps must be used responsibly. This involves using your critical judgment to assess the outputs of generative AI. Always verify generative AI outputs with reputable sources. Generative AI tools reflect the general biases which are present in the underlying information that they have been trained on. Generative AI tools can hallucinate, where they produce a plausible and authoritative-sounding reply to a user prompt which is actually false or misleading. Hallucination can also produce realistic-seeming citations for works that do not exist. You are responsible for any deficiencies in your academic work that are based on false or misleading information generated by AI. Do not let generative AI do your thinking/creating for you. While generative AI may help you understand difficult concepts or may give you suggestions for topics/ideas as a starting point for assessments, it is not a substitute for learning course materials and completing your work.

To delve more deeply into questions related to generative AI or to learn more about best practices when using generative AI tools visit the University of Windsor's student guide for using generative AI.

There are special considerations related to copyright when using generative AI. The Leddy Library has a guide for copyright considerations specific to generative AI available here.

If you have questions or concerns about incorporating generative AI into your academic writing you may wish to contact the Leddy Research and Reference Help Team (leddyreference@uwindsor.ca) or the Writing Support Desk.
 

References & Further Reading


Ask the MLA: How do I cite generative AI in MLA style? (2023, March 17). MLA Style Center. https://style.mla.org/citing-generative-ai/

Citation, Documentation of Source. (n.d.) The Chicago Manual of Style Online. https://www-chicagomanualofstyle-org.ledproxy2.uwindsor.ca/qanda/data/faq/topics/Documentation/faq0422.html

IEEE. (2024). Submission and Peer Review Policies. IEEE Author Center Journals. https://journals.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/become-an-ieee-journal-author/publishing-ethics/guidelines-and-policies/submission-and-peer-review-policies/

McAdoo, Timothy. How to cite ChatGPT. (2024, February 23). APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/how-to-cite-chatgpt

OpenAI. (2022, November 30). Introducing ChatGPT. https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt

Inspiration and content adapted from the following research guides, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 and Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License:

Contributors

Adam Mulcaster
Annie Kavanagh

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