At Durham University, I have been Chair of the Board of Examiners for Philosophy since 2016. Last week I resigned, because I feel that it is my responsibility to raise a vital issue in higher education, one whose true significance is not understood. The existence of a crisis requiring immediate action is not generally recognised. I am not blaming the deans and pro-vice-chancellors. I want to hold the appropriate figures to account: the Vice-Chancellors.
Durham University is a beacon of excellence in the UK university sector. I wish to maintain standards in its top-rated Philosophy department. The issue I am addressing affects students past, present and future, in many leading British universities. It involves a crime that is not victimless. It is this: the lazy student cheats with professional-grade versions of AI chatbots such as ChatGPT or Claude, and gets a first-class result. The hard-working student uses no bots, or a non-professional bot honestly, thinking and writing for themselves, but gets a 2:1. That’s not fair. Yet Vice-Chancellors – to mix metaphors – are sitting on their lavishly-remunerated backsides and adopting the ostrich position.
The lazy student cheats with professional-grade versions of AI chatbots such as ChatGPT or Claude, and gets a first-class result
