Emergent scholarship

Classroom policy on the use of generative AI

6 min read

A template you can adapt

This policy is designed to be copied and customised for your own modules. Replace the placeholder text in square brackets with your specific details. The metadata template below shows the fields you might want to track.

Metadata template

If you’re using this policy in a system that supports YAML frontmatter (Obsidian, Notion, or similar), here’s a template for tracking policy metadata:

---
title: [Module code] Policy on the use of generative AI
policy_type: classroom
status: Active
applies_to: Students enrolled in [module code]
module: [module code]
programme: [programme name]
version: 1.0
created_date: [YYYY-MM-DD]
last_reviewed: [YYYY-MM-DD]
next_review: [YYYY-MM-DD]
owner: [Your name]
source: Adapted from Mollick (2023) and Rowe (2026)
---

Policy on the use of generative AI

In this module, I encourage you to use generative AI to support your learning. This includes text-generating services like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini, as well as image generation tools like DALL-E and Midjourney.

This policy applies only to this module. Check with lecturers in other modules about their expectations for AI use.

Why we use AI in this module

Learning to use AI effectively is an emerging professional skill. Employers increasingly expect graduates to work competently with these tools. But competence means more than knowing which buttons to press—it means developing judgement about when and how to use AI appropriately.

In this module, you will develop AI literacy not by learning about AI, but by using AI to engage with the module content. Through practical activities across the module, you’ll move from structured, guided use toward more independent and sophisticated engagement.

AI as a thinking partner

Think of AI as a cognitive partner, not a search engine or answer machine.

  • AI generates, it doesn’t retrieve. Unlike Google, AI creates responses based on patterns—it doesn’t look things up. This means it can be creative and helpful, but also confidently wrong.
  • Conversation beats transaction. A single prompt rarely gets the best results. Good AI use involves back-and-forth dialogue: refining, challenging, and building on responses.
  • You bring what AI lacks. AI doesn’t know your context, your assignment requirements, or what actually matters in your field. Your job is to bring that judgement.

The tutor heuristic

A simple test for appropriate AI use:

If you would comfortably ask a lecturer or tutor the same question, it’s probably OK to ask the AI.

You might ask a tutor for feedback on your writing—so asking AI for feedback is fine. You wouldn’t ask a tutor to write your essay—so don’t ask AI to write it either.

If an activity asks you to reflect, you do the reflecting. If it asks for your analysis, the thinking needs to be yours. AI can help you develop and test your ideas, but cannot substitute for your intellectual contribution.

When in doubt, ask.

What you’re developing

Over this module, you’ll build capability across six dimensions of AI literacy:

  1. Knowing when to use AI — Not every task benefits from AI. Learning to recognise when AI is helpful (and when it isn’t) is a core skill.
  2. Evaluating AI outputs critically — AI sounds confident even when wrong. You must verify claims, check sources, and apply your own judgement.
  3. Using AI effectively — Practical skills in prompting, structuring conversations, and getting useful outputs. This improves with practice.
  4. Creating with AI support — Using AI to support your thinking and drafting while ensuring the intellectual contribution remains yours.
  5. Understanding ethical implications — Recognising issues of bias, privacy, and appropriate use in professional contexts.
  6. Developing professional judgement — Building the taste and discernment to know what “good” AI engagement looks like in your field.

Your journey through the module

You’ll develop these capabilities progressively:

Early weeks: We’ll work with clear structures and explicit guidance. You’ll learn the basics of effective prompting and practice comparing AI outputs against reliable sources.

Middle weeks: You’ll start adapting AI use to your own learning needs—using it to test your understanding, develop arguments, and identify gaps in your thinking.

Later weeks: You’ll make more independent decisions about when and how to engage AI, reflecting on what works for you and what doesn’t.

The practical activities are designed to support this progression. Come prepared to experiment.

Documenting your AI use

For assignments where you use AI, include documentation showing:

  1. The prompts you used
  2. Key outputs the AI produced
  3. How you used, adapted, or rejected those outputs
  4. What your original intellectual contribution was

Language editing alone is not an original contribution. Your contribution should demonstrate critical thinking and judgement beyond what the AI generated.

Important limitations

AI makes things up. It generates plausible-sounding text, including false facts and fabricated citations. Never trust a fact or reference from AI without verifying it yourself. You are responsible for everything you submit.

Low-effort prompts produce low-quality results. Learning to prompt well takes practice. We’ll work on this in class.

AI doesn’t know your context. It doesn’t know your assignment brief, your programme requirements, or what matters in your professional field. You provide that judgement.

Use AI for ideas, not answers. AI is most useful for exploring possibilities, testing your thinking, and getting unstuck—not for giving you things to copy.

Academic integrity

Using AI without acknowledgement violates academic honesty policies. Always document your AI use as described above.

If you’re unsure whether a particular use is appropriate, ask before submitting.

Adapting this policy

When customising this policy for your module, consider:

  • Your disciplinary context: What does appropriate AI use look like in your field? Are there specific professional standards students should be aware of?
  • Your assessment design: Which assignments permit AI use? Which require unassisted work? Be explicit.
  • Your developmental goals: How will students progress from guided to independent AI engagement across your module?
  • Your institutional requirements: Does your institution have overarching AI policies this should align with?

Sources

This policy template draws on:

  • Mollick, E. (2023). Why all our classes suddenly became AI classes. Harvard Business Publishing Education.
  • Rowe, M. (2026). AI literacy development framework. Emergent Scholarship.
  • Long, D., & Magerko, B. (2020). What is AI Literacy? Competencies and Design Considerations. CHI ‘20.

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