San Francisco Bay University Addresses ChatGPT's Impact on Education

A formal working group is finding solutions that support innovation and maintain academic integrity

FREMONT, Calif., Feb. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- San Francisco Bay University (SFBU) is taking a proactive approach to address the impact of ChatGPT on higher education. Utilizing the GPT-3 language model developed by OpenAI, ChatGPT has been hailed as a game-changer in the education industry. However, its potential for misuse, including cheating on assignments and exams, raises concerns. SFBU asked several engineering department faculty members how ChatGPT is influencing their teaching style and how they are adapting to the innovation.

Engineering Dean Thawi Iwagoshi acknowledged that "Any advanced technologies can be used to do beneficial or harmful things." He continued, "Our faculty members have taken notice of this early on and begun a discussion on how to utilize ChatGPT to help with student learning. We are also finding means and developing policies to prevent it from being used in ways that infringe on our academic integrity."

As Ahmed Banafa, a faculty member at SFBU, noted, "the impact of ChatGPT on higher education is still uncertain, but it holds the potential to greatly improve the way students learn and how educators teach."

Dr. Henry Chang emphasized that educators need to find ways to harness ChatGPT's full potential while also addressing the challenges it presents. "It's unrealistic to simply ban it," he said. "Instead, we need to educate students on the responsible use of ChatGPT and find ways to use it for improvement in teaching and prevent its misuse."

SFBU is committed to finding ways to responsibly incorporate ChatGPT into higher education while also ensuring that it is not misused. A formal working group is currently delving deeper into these concerns and finding solutions that support innovation and maintain academic integrity. 

SFBU is a premier WASC/WSCUC-accredited, nonprofit university located in the San Francisco Bay Area/Silicon Valley. SFBU offers degree programs in computer science, engineering, technology, and management. Learn more at www.SFBU.edu.

SOURCE San Francisco Bay University