Insights from the Frontline: GenAI Utilization Among Software Engineering Students
Project Overview
Generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT and Copilot, are increasingly utilized in software engineering education, prompting an examination of their impact on student learning. Interviews with software engineering students reveal that these tools offer significant advantages, including personalized assistance and enhanced comprehension of complex concepts. However, the study also uncovers challenges related to students' over-reliance on AI, a lack of clarity regarding the functionalities of these tools, and ethical concerns associated with their use. The findings emphasize the necessity for educators to provide guidance on the effective integration of generative AI into the curriculum, ensuring that students can maximize the benefits while mitigating potential pitfalls. Ultimately, the paper advocates for a structured approach to incorporating AI tools into educational practices to improve learning outcomes in software engineering.
Key Applications
Use of generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Copilot) for learning and implementing software engineering concepts
Context: Educational context for software engineering students, particularly in senior and capstone courses
Implementation: Through reflective interviews with 16 SE students to gather experiences and insights on genAI usage
Outcomes: Students reported benefits in incremental learning and initial implementations; challenges in initial learning and advanced implementations
Challenges: Over-reliance on AI, unclear understanding of genAI limitations, difficulties in aligning AI to personal learning styles and needs
Implementation Barriers
Understanding Barriers
Students have an unclear understanding of genAI's limitations, appropriate applications in software engineering, and struggle to effectively communicate their needs or context when interacting with genAI.
Proposed Solutions: Educators need to guide students on the effective use of genAI, setting clear expectations regarding its capabilities and limitations. Additionally, training on framing questions and prompts effectively could assist students in utilizing genAI more productively.
Ethical Barriers
Concerns about the ethical use of genAI tools in academic settings and the potential for academic misconduct.
Proposed Solutions: Educators should develop clear policies about the acceptable use of genAI in academic work and teach students the importance of verifying AI outputs.
Project Team
Rudrajit Choudhuri
Researcher
Ambareesh Ramakrishnan
Researcher
Amreeta Chatterjee
Researcher
Bianca Trinkenreich
Researcher
Igor Steinmacher
Researcher
Marco Gerosa
Researcher
Anita Sarma
Researcher
Contact Information
For information about the paper, please contact the authors.
Authors: Rudrajit Choudhuri, Ambareesh Ramakrishnan, Amreeta Chatterjee, Bianca Trinkenreich, Igor Steinmacher, Marco Gerosa, Anita Sarma
Source Publication: View Original PaperLink opens in a new window
Project Contact: Dr. Jianhua Yang
LLM Model Version: gpt-4o-mini-2024-07-18
Analysis Provider: Openai