Teaching and grading with Julia and Pluto (... and ChatGPT)

VivMendes
Tue, 01 Oct 2024 18:57:34 +0000
General Usage

Hi everybody. We have used Julia and Pluto in an economics course over the last four years. Students use Pluto notebooks to solve numerical (and symbolic) problems, and the assessment moments (tests/exams) are also undertaken using Pluto notebooks in in-person evaluations (students use their personal computers). The assessment moments are open-book, with the possibility of accessing the internet.

We have around 300 students enrolled in our course, and until recently, we were not aware of any fraud at all. Pluto’s flexibility has allowed us to minimize the eventuality of fraud by truncating the test/notebook students receive by email. In essence, what we have done is this: (i) the test each student receives is randomly generated, (ii) students can not change the contents in the notebook’s cells, (iii) they can not open new cells nor delete existing ones, and (iv) students can not copy text from the Pluto window (browser).

Our teaching experience with Julia and Pluto has been overwhelmingly positive, benefiting both teachers and students. However, ChatGPT’s explosive impact has posed a significant challenge to all of us, particularly in the context of grading. ChatGPT can now answer any question, whether numerical, symbolic, graphical, or even a mixture of the formers, in the blink of an eye.

To avoid fraud, what have other universities done (or will do) to minimize the terrible problem of having students using ChatGPT in in-person evaluation assessments when the computer is used in that context? I would be very grateful if the members of this community could help with information about steps that have been (or will be) implemented to minimize fraud in such an environment (I am concerned with tests only, not with thesis or reports).

We have been discussing this issue at my university and we have one wish and a constraint:

1. We want to avoid returning to a process where exercises and tests were solved using pencil, paper, and a rudimentary calculator.

2. Switching off the internet during the evaluation moments is (apparently) not an option, given the large number of students involved (300) and the problems it would cause other students in that part of the campus. (not to mention that students may have other means to connect to the internet)

What are other universities doing to prevent fraud by students resorting to ChatGPT in in-person conducted tests/exams? Any help will be very much appreciated. Thanks.

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