Students using Chatbots? Don't Mind If They Do...

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Summary

Newspaper headlines have been filling up with information about the ChatGPT, a new chatting robot, introduced recently by OpenAI. This includes cases of students attempting to cheat their way through a course or even their theses writing.

There is a hot debate on what the existence of ChatGPT, and the rapid development of artificial intelligence in general, means for education: Will the teaching profession become obsolete? Is this the end of online testing? Where is artificial intelligence heading?

This presentation attempts to suggest a way of taking advantage of and opportunities ChatGPT offers to educators and, more specifically, teachers of foreign languages, especially at secondary level of education. The main aim is, therefore, to present a brief overview of the recent developments in the field of artificial intelligence, focusing on the ChatGPT, and more specifically the use of the technology in language teaching. It also aims to identify skills teachers of languages may find useful when embracing the opportunities and trying to include new technology in their lessons. A specific example of a spontaneous use of ChatGPT to support lesson planning in a microteaching session by student-teachers in their second year of study is provided to illustrate the students’ eagerness to ‘test the waters’ of the speedily evolving field.

ChatGPT has inspired editorials but also a growing number of research papers, with the recurring theme of ‘friend or foe’ discussions of the characteristics of the technology. With the anticipated (as of March 2023) release of ChatGPT 4 and the imminent release of Microsoft’s answer to ChatGPT – Copilot – the question of academic integrity and suitability of the technology use in the language classroom is becoming more and more pressing and the need to support practicing but also future teachers in embracing the opportunities while being aware of the pitfalls.

About the presenter

The presenter, Katerina Keplova is an assistant lecturer of English Phonetics and Phonology, Academic Writing in English, and ELT Methodology at the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy, University of Pardubice, and a doctoral student at the Pedagogical Faculty of Education, Masaryk University, Brno. Her main field of interest is assessment – from self-assessment to formal, standardised exam assessment. In her dissertation thesis, she researches the process of developing the self-assessment skills of tertiary students, focusing on pronunciation in English.