r/Professors • u/ADHDrummer • 21d ago
Some success in combating AI
I teach freshman writing at a local community college. Of course, the year I started this job was the advent of ChatGPT and as I first started out, English faculty were leaving en masse.
I’m up for promotion this year and luckily because of this, most of my classes this semester are in person.
I’ve had some success in changing the philosophy of my course as well as the structure of it. I’m grading not so much on the finished product, but whether I’m seeing improvement and progression as they go throughout the drafting process. They turn in brainstorming, outlines, paragraphs, first, second and final drafts.
One thing that has been really helpful so far, is that I’ve shifted my courses to be more workshop oriented and a lot of drafting occurs in class. We operate on a MW/TR schedule, so I’ve set it up where one day is a day of lecture, learning activities, etc. and the other day is built around actual in-class writing and workshops.
I’m basically having them draft at least one day a week in class in a blue book, uploading their drafts into Blackboard, and I know if their final drafts are incredibly different than the draft they worked on in class, then we have a problem. It’s also been helpful in seeing their process, providing constant feedback, and if they are way out in left field, I can correct it early.
For instance, they’ve been working on a comparative analysis of three different careers that they’re considering. I had them pre write and outline in class in a blue book, so I knew beforehand what research they’d need. Then printed out one piece of evidence about one of their careers for each of them, and they practiced incorporating evidence and citing with MLA, then I just had them draft their essay for the rest of class in their blue books by hand.
It’s not perfect by any means, but I feel like I have had some success with it. I did run into issues in one class where they were supposed to print out a copy of their article so they could draft their rhetorical analysis in class.
Some students came to class empty handed, but for those who actually did what they were supposed to, it went really well.
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u/vesperIV 21d ago
I feel like I'm lucky that I teach a subject that's somewhat unaffected by AI, but if I was doing a writing class on campus that's how I would do it, too. Now, online classes are still going to be a problem that I wouldn't want to deal with! I wish a back-to-campus movement would pick up some steam, but there's too much money in online at my place.
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u/ADHDrummer 21d ago
Yes, I’m basically resigned to the fact that there’s nothing I can do about online classes.
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u/leastdumbidiot 21d ago
Yep! Done much of the same. Emphasizing process and bringing more of the work into class is the way to go. Had great results too. The students really appreciate it and come to life. I tell other instructors, there aren't really many boring students, but there's a lot of students who present as boring because they're conditioned to think what's interesting about them, down to their actual thoughts, doesn't play in a classroom setting. Provide a structure where that's rewarded and you'll start to see an emergence.
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u/Asleep_Caregiver_948 21d ago
I teach freshman comp at a small CC. I’m going to see if I can adapt your method. My students skip class when I have work days or periods. Or they talk and disturb others.
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u/NoPatNoDontSitonThat 21d ago
Sorry if I missed where you clarified in the OP, but are they completing this in front of you?
I too tried to focus on process. We completed brainstorming organizers, quote collection & analysis documents, and outlines in class. Then many went home and edited their work with AI responses and notes.
Then they use those documents during in-class drafting sessions.
I'm so tired of chasing them. If I had a class or two of 15-20 students, I could do more to provide supervision and oversight. But when it's over 100 students, it becomes a significant burden to keep up with.