“When you are assessing a student’s work, it is a basic presupposition that you are engaging with a single point of view, for which the stated author can rightly claim the credit. Any contradictions in the text reflect contradictions in the author’s own mind, as do any brilliant insights. Violate that contract and you might as well chuck the whole thing away.”
Kathleen Stock, philosopher
This non-profit grassroots site identifies and verifies courses where all graded work is done in person, offline, and on paper/orally. Just a decade ago, these methods (and this site) were not needed. Unfortunately, many colleges and universities are preparing to self-lobotomize. Profs and students both realize that reliance on AI is eroding our ability to think. For some subjects, this is a big deal (see here and here). So, if you want to make your next assignments 100% AI-free — and give students public recognition for their effort — completing the form at the very bottom of this page will let your course and their names appear in this directory:
Professors must design their course(s) to match the three criteria, turn in a PDF copy of their syllabus, arrange one brief visit by an agreed-upon auditor in their vicinity (to vouch that things unfold as claimed), and commit to keeping all written work, should anyone one day wish to verify a student’s performance. Uploads and updates are verified manually and take about a week to appear. Everything is free. No catch, no gimmick — just a desire to provide dissenters with a tangible alternative.
Designing your course so that students cannot rely on AI for graded work…
…means you care about their actual learning
…doesn’t mean that this is the best approach for all academic subjects
…doesn’t mean you want to go back to the horse and buggy
…doesn’t prevent you from using digital tools in class and online
…shouldn’t make you feel isolated or radical
…should mean that students get public recognition for their genuine effort
Profs should state in their syllabus: “This course is explicitly designed to teach you AI-free skills and knowledge. As a result, all graded work and exams will be done in person, offline, and on paper/orally. Students who successfully complete the course can receive recognition on https://certifiedaifreeskillsandknowledge.org/“
Students listed in the directory are encouraged to state on their CV, job applications, and social profiles: “I have certified AI-free skills and knowledge (link).”
If you care about the de-skilling and homogenizing caused by AI, you are not alone (see this by piece by Harvard students and news reports about profs grading with handwritten work, live presentations, and oral examinations). Naturally, nobody wants to be called names or be put at a disadvantage. So, in a setting where no one gets their grades with AI, it becomes a leveled playing field where actual learning is restored (with special recognition, to boot). As a hub of curated information, this site aims to change the landscape of incentives.
Worst-case scenario: A handful of profs and students will do this, work harder, and feel clean.
Best-case scenario: In time, employers and admissions offices will only pay attention to grades from courses certified as AI-free.
By analogy, consider that when Central Park in New York was initially zoned as development-free, it was a worthless plot of land. Now, people pay great sums to have an apartment with a view on Central Park. I surmise that something similar will happen, as the value of an AI-free education climbs.
Education is not the only domain were people are feeling a need to certify things as AI-free (see these for-profit models in business and publishing). Is grading student work in person, offline, and on paper/orally perfect? No; there are trade-offs to every choice. Digital media have pros and cons, but we tend to forget the cons. Analog media also have pros and cons, but we tend to forget the pros. Does something have to be perfect in order to be acted upon? No; a cure does not have to be a cure-all in order to cure. And we have ample evidence that this one works.
To clarify: this site is about keeping AI out of (some) university/college classrooms, not eradicating AI altogether. Making your courses AI-free won’t “deprive” anyone of anything since, outside of class, students remain able to type prompts in a chatbot. The reverse however does not hold, since those who are reliant on machines cannot do what truly skilled and knowledgeable people can do.
You will diverge from current trends if you make your graded assignments AI-free, but don’t worry: Delineating a space for trees in a time of rapid urban expansion wasn’t “backward-looking.” On the contrary, it was very forward-looking.
If you have any questions or are unsure about anything, email me at marc.champagne@kpu.ca
Yours truly,
Dr. Marc Champagne, Founder and Web Administrator
https://www.kpu.ca/arts/philosophy/faculty/marc-champagne
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*Appearing in the directory does not imply that anyone is endorsing any person, group, or idea.