So I’m working through my last few credit hours of Masters classes. (I know, my timing is awesome. Starting a new job, moving to a new state, throwing my entire life into turmoil…. why not take some post-graduate work onboard too?) And I don’t know if you’re familiar, but in the current online educational environment, *ONLINE DISCUSSIONS* are a big part of the game. That is to say, the instructor posts some topic, and you are REQUIRED to respond based on readings or your own personal experience, and sometimes to respond to your classmates’ responses as well. In short, we’re trying to replicate those conversations we might have in a real classroom, in a virtual space.

An admirable goal, if imperfect. Of course it’s good to talk these things out, and writing (don’t I know it) your thoughts down is probably the best way to straighten out your own thinking about a thing. Of course, what makes a discussion work is the real-time exchange of ideas, not to mention all the other accoutrement of face-to-face interaction (tone of voice, facial expressions, etc). With those out the window … having these “conversations” begins to feel a little more like a hoop to jump through rather than a real, organic way to learn.

Ok, so why am I on about these discussions?

Well, months ago, a colleague of mine told me that she uses AI to do these assignments. She sees no value in them (seeing them, as I do, as a hoop to jump through). So she lets the robots do the work. What’s the harm, right? It’s not like the instructor is reading back in excruciating detail to see if you actually responded and thought about what was said … it’s more like, “did they post something? Does it look like they answered what was being said? Check, move on”.

So I tried it. Obviously. And … I just can’t. I 100% agree with her, but I just can’t let something like that go out with my name on it. AI isn’t there yet, it sounds phony or wordy or just awkward in a way that humans — or at least this particular human — *don’t sound*.

But then I read the comments to my classmates’ posts. And I read what they say in response to my own. And the lizard part of my brain whispers to my subconscious, “NO REAL PERSON WROTE THIS.”

I see it everywhere. Did that person *really* need to ask that question? Was that *really* your takeaway from what was said? Do you *really* appreciate that contribution?

There’s no way to know they’re NOT taking the easy way out, and my brain is poisoned.

And they’re objectively smarter than me, because I’m still sinking in the time.