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Trust in Generative AI among students: An Exploratory Study

Project Overview

The document examines the integration of Generative AI (GenAI) in computer science education (CSEd), emphasizing the importance of student trust in these technologies. Through a survey involving 253 students from two universities, it reveals that trust levels significantly influence the adoption and effective use of GenAI tools, particularly in code generation and explanation tasks. The findings indicate that while some students exhibit high trust in GenAI applications, others remain skeptical, which poses challenges for both educators and developers aiming to enhance learning outcomes. Additionally, the document addresses concerns related to plagiarism and inherent biases within AI systems, underscoring the necessity for a deeper understanding of the factors influencing trust in educational settings. Ultimately, the study calls for strategies to cultivate appropriate levels of trust among students to better leverage GenAI's potential in education.

Key Applications

GenAI programming assistants for generating code examples and explanations

Context: Computer science education for undergraduate and graduate students

Implementation: A survey was conducted at two universities (University of Houston and Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur) involving students using GenAI tools.

Outcomes: Students reported varying levels of trust in GenAI, with some indicating improvements in motivation and confidence when using GenAI tools. The study aims to inform educators on the factors impacting trust and the appropriate use of GenAI.

Challenges: Concerns about plagiarism, biases, and the ability of students to evaluate AI-generated code were identified as significant limitations.

Implementation Barriers

Trust-related barrier

Varying levels of trust among students affect their utilization of GenAI tools in programming.

Proposed Solutions: Educators should develop strategies to help students calibrate their trust in GenAI tools appropriately.

Ethical concerns

Concerns about plagiarism and biases in AI outputs raise questions about the ethical use of GenAI in education.

Proposed Solutions: Educators need to address these concerns and establish guidelines for the responsible use of GenAI.

Project Team

Matin Amoozadeh

Researcher

David Daniels

Researcher

Daye Nam

Researcher

Aayush Kumar

Researcher

Stella Chen

Researcher

Michael Hilton

Researcher

Sruti Srinivasa Ragavan

Researcher

Mohammad Amin Alipour

Researcher

Contact Information

For information about the paper, please contact the authors.

Authors: Matin Amoozadeh, David Daniels, Daye Nam, Aayush Kumar, Stella Chen, Michael Hilton, Sruti Srinivasa Ragavan, Mohammad Amin Alipour

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

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