Ethical AI Use in Classrooms
Excellent Educator, Volume: 2, Issue: 24, Page: 2
Summary of Mwakalinga & Mabilika (2025)
Academic Insights
- 91% of students/teachers have encountered AI tools like ChatGPT and Grammarly.
- Students see AI as empowering; teachers are more concerned about reduced cognitive engagement.
- 70% believe AI increases academic dishonesty and reduces critical thinking.
- 80% of learners report improved performance with AI, but teachers doubt understanding of AI-generated work.
- Stakeholder views differ widely, complicating policy creation.
- Strong call for ethics training, digital literacy, and institution-level AI norms.
Apply This Now
- Co-create an Ethical Use Agreement: what counts as help vs. dishonesty.
- Shift classroom focus toward reasoning tasks instead of product-based assignments.
- Use AI to demonstrate misconceptions—generate flawed answers and ask students to fix them.
Add This in Your Lesson
Run a “Detect the flaw” activity: input a prompt into AI, show the class, and ask students to correct errors.
Avoid This Mistake
Assuming students using AI well means they understand the underlying content.
Source/Citation
Mwakalinga, S. E., & Mabilika, F. A. (2025). Perceptions, pitfalls, and proposals for the ethical use of artificial intelligence in the classroom: A case study of students and educators. Cogent Education, 12(1), 2557611. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2025.2557611
Suggested Citation: Ross, E., & Malar, D. B. J. (2025). Ethical AI Use in Classrooms. Excellent Educator, 2(24), 2.
