#AI #AIInSchool #students #teachers #writing #learning #education
How can you tell when students are using AI for legitimate purposes, or using it to cheat?
Teachers are grappling with this question, as Jocelyn Gecker discussed in her article for the Associated Press. It was published in the September 15, 2025, edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
She quotes high school and college educators, who say that assigning writing outside the classroom is like asking students to cheat.
“Anything you send home, you have to assume is being AI’d,” she quotes Casey Curry, who has taught English for 23 years and was a 2024 California Teacher of the Year.
His students, Gecker says, do most of their writing in class.
The reporter also points out that students are uncertain when AI usage is out of bounds. After all, students want to use all tools available to them, but not be accused of cheating.
Before AI, writing came easily to some students, but painfully difficult for others.
Also, there are students in many American schools for whom English is not a first language.
Gecker talks about one student who wrote his essay in his first language, and used a translation app to convert it to English. The app, she writes, improved some phrasing. Is that cheating?
Students have also used Grammarly, a popular AI writing assistance app, she writes.
Most good teachers want students to write what they know. Some are less concerned with creative phrasing and much more concerned with the knowledge the student imparts from his or her studies.
English and creative writing classes are different. They want to see the clever phrasing and catchy metaphors.
Most importantly, they want students’ work to be original.
Math teachers adapted to the use of calculators. Students are not learning cursive writing as much anymore because of the widespread use of electronic devices.
So, teachers must find ways to employ AI – students will use it whether or not it is forbidden – in ways that students can still impart what they have learned, but do it in a way that incorporates the modern world.
To those students for whom writing is difficult, AI could be a godsend. Making students struggle needlessly does not make for good teaching.
For those that can write easily, they will continue to write and perhaps use AI for research.
AI can be used for good, but it can also be used for sinister purposes.
It behooves teachers and students to find the good, and not the sinister. The sinister, eventually, will get caught, because there will be tools developed – or have already been developed – for teachers to discern real from fake.
The blessing here is that some teachers are requiring students to do their homework in school, and not at home. What student would not want less homework?
Peter
Monthly Archives: September 2025
WILL A COLLEGE DEGREE PAY OFF?
#colleges #universities #CollegeDegrees #jobs #JobPromotions #CollegeDebt
“I was a human resources professional for 20 years. But, I reached a ceiling.”
That quote, from a lady in a TV ad for the University of Maryland Global Campus, tells the story of how she has been able to pursue a good career until recently, when, apparently, she no longer qualified for advancement without a college degree.
So, the ad says, she went to UMGC to get her degree, and it is paying off.
When you couple that story with a column by George Will of the Washington Post talking about the declining value of college degrees, as well as other ads about paper ceilings, it paints an interesting picture of today’s world.
As Will points out, some jobs today that don’t appear to require a college degree suddenly require them.
Will’s column was also published Aug. 31, 2025, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In the past few decades, we were all told that a college degree was essential to getting a good job – or, at least, one that would be more likely to put you in an office than outside doing hard physical labor.
But, over time, college degrees have become unaffordable for many – so much so that many students had to incur debt that they may spend a lifetime trying to pay.
If you are fortunate to go to law or medical school, you are more likely to be able to pay off that debt in a relatively short time, presuming you are successful in either of those professions.
But, the job market for other degrees can be a bit unpredictable. If you need debt to finish college, you had better have reasonable assurance of a good income afterward to pay it off.
The need for people in the trades, like plumbers or electricians, is much more acute in many places.
Those jobs do not require a four-year degree, but they do require trade school, certifications, licenses etc., that are much less costly than college.
And, of course, those jobs require sometimes hard physical labor.
But, if you are good at your trade and you are reliable to your customers, you can make a better living than a lot of people with four-year degrees.
When college degrees were rare among young people, companies hired those with degrees, regardless of what the degree was in, then trained them for the job(s) they wanted them to do.
But, on-the-job training is harder – and more costly – for companies these days. They expect their workers to know what they are doing on Day 1.
The lady in the UMGC ad probably was very capable of doing the job she was striving for without a college degree. But not having a degree made it much easier for the hiring manager to reject her for that job.
Also, colleges pride themselves on their “elite” status in society and community. In today’s milieu, politicians want to cut out that elite status colleges have by threatening their government grants. That’s way too extreme a reaction.
It may be best to let colleges and universities conduct business as usual by giving them their research grants etc. They perform a great function in society by doing that work.
But, the average student is getting priced out of the college market. The colleges will have to do something to find the balance between teaching and research.
The average student may want to rethink his or her life options as he or she decides how to make a living, and what he or she has to do to get there.
Peter
“I was a human resources professional for 20 years. But, I reached a ceiling.”
That quote, from a lady in a TV ad for the University of Maryland Global Campus, tells the story of how she has been able to pursue a good career until recently, when, apparently, she no longer qualified for advancement without a college degree.
So, the ad says, she went to UMGC to get her degree, and it is paying off.
When you couple that story with a column by George Will of the Washington Post talking about the declining value of college degrees, as well as other ads about paper ceilings, it paints an interesting picture of today’s world.
As Will points out, some jobs today that don’t appear to require a college degree suddenly require them.
Will’s column was also published Aug. 31, 2025, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In the past few decades, we were all told that a college degree was essential to getting a good job – or, at least, one that would be more likely to put you in an office than outside doing hard physical labor.
But, over time, college degrees have become unaffordable for many – so much so that many students had to incur debt that they may spend a lifetime trying to pay.
If you are fortunate to go to law or medical school, you are more likely to be able to pay off that debt in a relatively short time, presuming you are successful in either of those professions.
But, the job market for other degrees can be a bit unpredictable. If you need debt to finish college, you had better have reasonable assurance of a good income afterward to pay it off.
The need for people in the trades, like plumbers or electricians, is much more acute in many places.
Those jobs do not require a four-year degree, but they do require trade school, certifications, licenses etc., that are much less costly than college.
And, of course, those jobs require sometimes hard physical labor.
But, if you are good at your trade and you are reliable to your customers, you can make a better living than a lot of people with four-year degrees.
When college degrees were rare among young people, companies hired those with degrees, regardless of what the degree was in, then trained them for the job(s) they wanted them to do.
But, on-the-job training is harder – and more costly – for companies these days. They expect their workers to know what they are doing on Day 1.
The lady in the UMGC ad probably was very capable of doing the job she was striving for without a college degree. But not having a degree made it much easier for the hiring manager to reject her for that job.
Also, colleges pride themselves on their “elite” status in society and community. In today’s milieu, politicians want to cut out that elite status colleges have by threatening their government grants. That’s way too extreme a reaction.
It may be best to let colleges and universities conduct business as usual by giving them their research grants etc. They perform a great function in society by doing that work.
But, the average student is getting priced out of the college market. The colleges will have to do something to find the balance between teaching and research.
The average student may want to rethink his or her life options as he or she decides how to make a living, and what he or she has to do to get there.
Peter
HOW DO YOU DEFINE SUCCESS? GEN Z MEN, WOMEN HAVE DIFFERENT VIEWS
#GenZ #HavingChildren #WhenToHaveChildren #ConcernAboutTheFuture #men #women
How do you define success?
If you are between 18 and 29 years old, depending on whether you are a man or a woman, you may view success differently, according to a recent NBC News poll, conducted with Survey Monkey.
Both men and women all ranked having a fulfilling job, having money to do the things they want to do and achieving financial independence highly, the poll says.
About 25 percent of those polled say they are worried about their future.
But a remarkable percentage of Gen Z men ranked having children as their top characteristic of success. Women ranked having children closer to the bottom of their priorities, the poll said.
Today’s politics is filled with notions of women concentrating more on motherhood than careers.
But, with this generation having a more difficult time than their parents did in making a life, the idea of having children may be a low priority for many women.
In decades past, it was easier for women to stay at home while men went to work. Today, with prices of necessities soaring, it’s almost impossible to live on one salary.
It’s no wonder this generation is feeling anxious about the future.
Politicians like to carve out dream scenarios. Often, they are just dreams untethered to reality.
Even with both men and women in the same household working, making ends meet – let alone saving for a house or retirement – is much more difficult.
They can only look at their parents and grandparents and wonder how they could build the equity they had built. Inheritance may be their only hope.
Not only is it financially difficult to have children, it’s can be financially difficult to get married. Some data indicates that many first-time home buyers are in their 40s, when it’s supposed to be the prime of your earning years.
Their parents and grandparents may have gotten married fairly young, bought a small house fairly early into their marriage and traded up to better housing over the years to accommodate their families.
Many of those parents or grandparents have adult children living with them, because, even with a job, they can’t live on their own, let alone start a family.
If young men see success in having children, how are they going to do that?
If such young men still live with mom and dad, they are already starting from behind.
With unaffordable rents, and salaries and job opportunities not commensurate with those rents, they can’t start building a life outside of mom and dad’s house.
Having children may be great, but one has to be able to afford them. Having children you can’t afford will only put those kids behind in many ways.
The same politicians encouraging young people to have children are the same ones who refuse to help provide for those children once they are born.
So, if you are young today, make the best choices you can. Don’t let anyone bully you into a life you can’t handle.
Remember: Step 1 is finding a reasonably good paying job. Step 2 is moving out of mom and dad’s house. Step 3 is finding a good, responsible life partner. Once you’ve done those things, you can think about when to have a family.
Peter
How do you define success?
If you are between 18 and 29 years old, depending on whether you are a man or a woman, you may view success differently, according to a recent NBC News poll, conducted with Survey Monkey.
Both men and women all ranked having a fulfilling job, having money to do the things they want to do and achieving financial independence highly, the poll says.
About 25 percent of those polled say they are worried about their future.
But a remarkable percentage of Gen Z men ranked having children as their top characteristic of success. Women ranked having children closer to the bottom of their priorities, the poll said.
Today’s politics is filled with notions of women concentrating more on motherhood than careers.
But, with this generation having a more difficult time than their parents did in making a life, the idea of having children may be a low priority for many women.
In decades past, it was easier for women to stay at home while men went to work. Today, with prices of necessities soaring, it’s almost impossible to live on one salary.
It’s no wonder this generation is feeling anxious about the future.
Politicians like to carve out dream scenarios. Often, they are just dreams untethered to reality.
Even with both men and women in the same household working, making ends meet – let alone saving for a house or retirement – is much more difficult.
They can only look at their parents and grandparents and wonder how they could build the equity they had built. Inheritance may be their only hope.
Not only is it financially difficult to have children, it’s can be financially difficult to get married. Some data indicates that many first-time home buyers are in their 40s, when it’s supposed to be the prime of your earning years.
Their parents and grandparents may have gotten married fairly young, bought a small house fairly early into their marriage and traded up to better housing over the years to accommodate their families.
Many of those parents or grandparents have adult children living with them, because, even with a job, they can’t live on their own, let alone start a family.
If young men see success in having children, how are they going to do that?
If such young men still live with mom and dad, they are already starting from behind.
With unaffordable rents, and salaries and job opportunities not commensurate with those rents, they can’t start building a life outside of mom and dad’s house.
Having children may be great, but one has to be able to afford them. Having children you can’t afford will only put those kids behind in many ways.
The same politicians encouraging young people to have children are the same ones who refuse to help provide for those children once they are born.
So, if you are young today, make the best choices you can. Don’t let anyone bully you into a life you can’t handle.
Remember: Step 1 is finding a reasonably good paying job. Step 2 is moving out of mom and dad’s house. Step 3 is finding a good, responsible life partner. Once you’ve done those things, you can think about when to have a family.
Peter
WORDS MATTER; IF YOU DON’T TALK AS MOST DO, YOU LOSE
#messaging #words #phrases #”Average”People #”Different”People “sensibilities
Words matter.
More importantly, phrasing matters.
In political parlance, it’s called messaging.
Bill Torpy, columnist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, discussed this in his September 4, 2025, column.
He points out that some in the political arena are trying to talk to people using words and terms they believe express the right sensibilities for every group, but sound elitist to most people.
Think “politically correct,” “woke,” and “pregnant people.” The latter, Torpy points out, refers not to just women, but also to women trying to become men, but still can give birth.
These are terms that “average” people not only don’t use, but also don’t resonate with them.
An old adage goes: why use a 25-cent word when a 5-cent word says the same thing. But, in the case of these terms, they are not just 25-cent words. There are no 5-cent words to replace them, and they talk about concepts that are not part of “average” people’s lives.
When one uses them, particularly in a political setting in which messaging can be critical, “average” people completely do not get the message.
Those in certain groups, with whom “average” people do not necessarily associate, may appreciate the expressions of sensibility to their situations.
But, even the sincerest expression of sensibility does not necessarily win elections. Though “average” people may empathize with one’s sensibilities, they may not need or want to have them communicated. Those callous about one’s sensibilities may be more likely to say things that resonate better with “average” people.
A good rule of thumb is: even if you are totally empathic with the plight of people who are “different” from the “average,” use only language you would use at the dinner table.
“No Kings” has a ring to it. So does “Make America Great Again.” They are totally opposite viewpoints politically, but people understand what you are saying.
And, ANY message about giving certain “different” people an advantage in any selection or review process will completely turn off “average” people who want the same advantage.
Remember, in messaging, fairness is debatable. Right and wrong may have different definitions, depending on one’s perspective. The universe of understanding is a melting pot, whether we like it or not.
As a warning to those who run for office: don’t give people the impression that you will do one thing, then do the opposite if you win.
Be sincere. Mean what you say. But, it’s just as important to say it in terms that both “average” and “different” people understand.
Boutique terminology may seem fashionable, but those who mostly wear “working-man’s clothes” don’t care about fashion. In fact, they often resent it.
So, whether you run for office or not, speak simply, clearly and remember your typical dinner-table conversations. Failure to do so could have you eating your words.
Peter
Words matter.
More importantly, phrasing matters.
In political parlance, it’s called messaging.
Bill Torpy, columnist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, discussed this in his September 4, 2025, column.
He points out that some in the political arena are trying to talk to people using words and terms they believe express the right sensibilities for every group, but sound elitist to most people.
Think “politically correct,” “woke,” and “pregnant people.” The latter, Torpy points out, refers not to just women, but also to women trying to become men, but still can give birth.
These are terms that “average” people not only don’t use, but also don’t resonate with them.
An old adage goes: why use a 25-cent word when a 5-cent word says the same thing. But, in the case of these terms, they are not just 25-cent words. There are no 5-cent words to replace them, and they talk about concepts that are not part of “average” people’s lives.
When one uses them, particularly in a political setting in which messaging can be critical, “average” people completely do not get the message.
Those in certain groups, with whom “average” people do not necessarily associate, may appreciate the expressions of sensibility to their situations.
But, even the sincerest expression of sensibility does not necessarily win elections. Though “average” people may empathize with one’s sensibilities, they may not need or want to have them communicated. Those callous about one’s sensibilities may be more likely to say things that resonate better with “average” people.
A good rule of thumb is: even if you are totally empathic with the plight of people who are “different” from the “average,” use only language you would use at the dinner table.
“No Kings” has a ring to it. So does “Make America Great Again.” They are totally opposite viewpoints politically, but people understand what you are saying.
And, ANY message about giving certain “different” people an advantage in any selection or review process will completely turn off “average” people who want the same advantage.
Remember, in messaging, fairness is debatable. Right and wrong may have different definitions, depending on one’s perspective. The universe of understanding is a melting pot, whether we like it or not.
As a warning to those who run for office: don’t give people the impression that you will do one thing, then do the opposite if you win.
Be sincere. Mean what you say. But, it’s just as important to say it in terms that both “average” and “different” people understand.
Boutique terminology may seem fashionable, but those who mostly wear “working-man’s clothes” don’t care about fashion. In fact, they often resent it.
So, whether you run for office or not, speak simply, clearly and remember your typical dinner-table conversations. Failure to do so could have you eating your words.
Peter
FALLING INTO PLACE; OR, JUST FALLING
#FallIntoPlace #fall #GetOrganized #garages #closets #clutter
“Some things fall into place. Other things just fall.”
That’s the message from a Safelite windshield repair TV ad. In the ad, a man tries to hang a bicycle from the ceiling of his garage – with the car in the garage.
Naturally, he fails, and the bike falls onto the car, cracking or breaking the windshield.
First, if you want to hang a bicycle from the garage ceiling, you don’t do it with the car IN the garage.
Second, if space is that tight, it might be less hazardous to hang the bike on the garage wall, rather than from the ceiling.
Third, how much work do you, or your kids, want to do to get access to the bike? Do you really want a 6-year-old climbing on a ladder to get his or her bike down, so he or she can ride it?
And, since the 6-year-old can’t drive, someone will have to move the car to give the child access to the bike.
The ad focuses on how easily windshields can be repaired or replaced If they crack or break.
But, it also has a message about how to, or how not to, solve space problems.
If space in your garage is tight, and you need to store both a bike and car in it, there are obviously ways to do it so both are accessible.
This also illustrates another issue: some people having so much stuff that they can’t fit both their car(s) and stuff in the garage.
Businesses have cropped up to help people organize closets, garages etc. Some people have so little imagination that they can’t figure out how to organize household space.
At the same time, home staging companies have cropped up because some people have difficulty imagining how an empty house would look with their furniture in it. So, the stager removes ALL personal items the seller has in the house and puts in some usually neutral furniture to help people decide whether a house will work for them.
The lessons from these examples might be: 1) If you have too much stuff for the space you occupy, get rid of some stuff. Figure out what you use or wear most. If you have duplicates of tools, clothes etc., get rid of the duplicate items. If there are things that just hang in your closet or garage that you can never see yourself using or wearing (again), get rid of those things.
The people that can help you organize things are usually masters of de-cluttering.
But, you shouldn’t need their services if you can weed through your stuff effectively.
Certainly, there are some things you may not use or wear often, but you need to keep them for the occasions that you need them.
Instead of paying someone to organize your stuff, have a yard or estate sale. There are those who specialize in running those sales who may be worth paying to get rid of your unneeded things.
Once you have your stuff under control, your life will get more in control.
That’s when things start falling into place, instead of just falling.
Peter
“Some things fall into place. Other things just fall.”
That’s the message from a Safelite windshield repair TV ad. In the ad, a man tries to hang a bicycle from the ceiling of his garage – with the car in the garage.
Naturally, he fails, and the bike falls onto the car, cracking or breaking the windshield.
First, if you want to hang a bicycle from the garage ceiling, you don’t do it with the car IN the garage.
Second, if space is that tight, it might be less hazardous to hang the bike on the garage wall, rather than from the ceiling.
Third, how much work do you, or your kids, want to do to get access to the bike? Do you really want a 6-year-old climbing on a ladder to get his or her bike down, so he or she can ride it?
And, since the 6-year-old can’t drive, someone will have to move the car to give the child access to the bike.
The ad focuses on how easily windshields can be repaired or replaced If they crack or break.
But, it also has a message about how to, or how not to, solve space problems.
If space in your garage is tight, and you need to store both a bike and car in it, there are obviously ways to do it so both are accessible.
This also illustrates another issue: some people having so much stuff that they can’t fit both their car(s) and stuff in the garage.
Businesses have cropped up to help people organize closets, garages etc. Some people have so little imagination that they can’t figure out how to organize household space.
At the same time, home staging companies have cropped up because some people have difficulty imagining how an empty house would look with their furniture in it. So, the stager removes ALL personal items the seller has in the house and puts in some usually neutral furniture to help people decide whether a house will work for them.
The lessons from these examples might be: 1) If you have too much stuff for the space you occupy, get rid of some stuff. Figure out what you use or wear most. If you have duplicates of tools, clothes etc., get rid of the duplicate items. If there are things that just hang in your closet or garage that you can never see yourself using or wearing (again), get rid of those things.
The people that can help you organize things are usually masters of de-cluttering.
But, you shouldn’t need their services if you can weed through your stuff effectively.
Certainly, there are some things you may not use or wear often, but you need to keep them for the occasions that you need them.
Instead of paying someone to organize your stuff, have a yard or estate sale. There are those who specialize in running those sales who may be worth paying to get rid of your unneeded things.
Once you have your stuff under control, your life will get more in control.
That’s when things start falling into place, instead of just falling.
Peter