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1 Nigerian Students Turn to aI For Tests Answers, Lecturers Raise Alarm

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming education while making discovering more accessible however also sparking disputes on its effect.

While trainees hail AI tools like ChatGPT for improving their knowing experience, speakers are raising issues about the growing reliance on AI, which they argue fosters laziness and undermines academic stability, particularly with numerous trainees not able to protect their tasks or offered works.

Prof. Isaac Nwaogwugwu, a lecturer at the University of Lagos, in an interview with Nairametrics, revealed disappointment over the growing dependence on AI -generated reactions amongst students recounting a current experience he had.

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"I gave an assignment to my MBA trainees, and out of over 100 trainees, about 40% sent the exact same answers. These trainees did not even understand each other, however they all used the very same AI tool to create their actions," he stated.

He kept in mind that this trend is common amongst both undergraduate and postgraduate students however is especially concerning in part-time and range learning programs.

"AI is a serious obstacle when it pertains to tasks. Many trainees no longer believe critically-they just go online, produce answers, and send," he added.

Surprisingly, some lecturers are also implicated of over-relying on AI, setting a cycle where both teachers and students turn to AI for benefit instead of intellectual rigor.

This debate raises vital questions about the role of AI in scholastic integrity and trainee development.

According to a UNESCO report, while ChatGPT reached 100 million monthly active users in January 2023, just one country had actually released regulations on generative AI as of July 2023.

Since December 2024, ChatGPT had over 300 million people using the AI chatbot each week and 1 billion messages sent out every day worldwide.

Decline of scholastic rigor

University speakers are significantly concerned about students submitting AI-generated tasks without really understanding the material.

Dr. Felix Echekoba, asteroidsathome.net a lecturer at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, expressed his issues to Nairametrics about students increasingly counting on ChatGPT, only to struggle with addressing standard questions when tested.

"Many students copy from ChatGPT and submit sleek projects, however when asked fundamental concerns, they go blank. It's frustrating due to the fact that education is about discovering, not simply passing courses," he stated.

- Prof. Nwaogwugwu pointed out that the increasing number of first-rate graduates can not be totally associated to AI but admitted that even high-performing trainees use these tools.
"A superior student is a top-notch student, AI or not, but that doesn't imply they do not cheat. The benefits of AI might be peripheral, but it is making trainees dependent and less analytical," he said.

- Another speaker, Dr. Ereke, from Ebonyi State University, raised a different issue that some lecturers themselves are guilty of the same practice.
"It's not simply trainees utilizing AI slackly. Some lecturers, out of their own laziness, produce lesson notes, course describes, marking plans, and even test concerns with AI without reviewing them. Students in turn utilize AI to create responses. It's a cycle of laziness and it is killing genuine learning," he lamented.

Students' viewpoints on use

Students, on the other hand, state AI has actually improved their learning experience by making academic products more reasonable and .

- Eniola Arowosafe, a 300-level Business Administration trainee at Unilag, shared how AI has significantly assisted her knowing by breaking down complex terms and offering summaries of prolonged texts.
"AI assisted me understand things more quickly, especially when handling intricate topics," she described.

However, she recalled a circumstances when she used AI to send her project, only for her speaker to right away recognize that it was created by ChatGPT and reject it. Eniola kept in mind that it was a good-bad impact.

- Bryan Okwuba, who just recently finished with a first-class degree in Pharmacy Technology from the University of Lagos, securely thinks that his academic success wasn't due to any AI tool. He associates his outstanding grades to actively interesting by asking questions and scientific-programs.science concentrating on areas that speakers emphasize in class, as they are often shown in test questions.
"It's everything about existing, taking note, and taking advantage of the wealth of knowledge shared by my colleagues," he said,

- Tunde Awoshita, a final-year marketing student at UNIZIK, admits to periodically copying directly from ChatGPT when dealing with multiple due dates.
"To be honest, there are times I copy straight from ChatGPT when I have several due dates, and I know I'm guilty of that, many times the lecturers do not get to review them, however AI has likewise assisted me learn quicker."

Balancing AI's function in education

Experts think the solution depends on AI literacy