Berkeley Professor Stops Grading Homework Over AI—How Teachers Are Adapting
Summary
UC Berkeley mathematics professor Richard Borcherds now gives students homework credit for turning in assignments rather than for correct answers, saying AI makes it hard to distinguish students’ work from AI-generated work. Universities are exploring other assessment methods as students adopt generative AI, while research and university reports highlight concerns about cheating and whether assessments measure what students understand.Key Facts
- Richard Borcherds, a UC Berkeley mathematics professor and 1998 Fields Medal winner, changed how he grades homework.
- Borcherds gives credit for completing homework on time instead of grading answers for correctness.
- He said he sees no reliable way to distinguish human-written work from AI-generated work.
- A Cornell study of more than 95,000 students at 20 U.S. public research universities found 37 percent used generative AI at least monthly and 9 percent reported using it to cheat.
- Cornell study co-author Rene Kizilcec said assessment reform is needed to protect the validity of assessments and the credibility of university credentials.
- Some professors are using oral exams and in-person assessments to evaluate students’ understanding.
- An MIT committee report said AI is prompting the university to reconsider assessment and teaching practices, and recommended preparing for an AI-aware learning environment.
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