SCHOOLS must recognize the inevitability of artificial intelligence (AI) by crafting institutional policies to prevent its “misuse and abuse,” a researcher and academic said during a forum on Feb. 8.
In the 74th Humphrey Voice Series, University of Mindanao administrator Ronnie Amorado underscored the need for clearer guidelines on the use of AI in the academic setting and investing in research and resources for the technology.
“We need a policy statement, honor code, and operational guidelines. We need very clear AI instruction and assessment,” Amorado said during the forum at the Buenaventura Garcia Paredes, O.P. Building lobby.
Amorado, the senior vice president for academic affairs at the University of Mindanao, emphasized the need for tailored AI guidelines that cater to specific needs and contexts rather than having a standardized approach.
“I believe there has to be guidelines. Hindi naman necessarily standardized na true to all but may kani-kaniyang needs and context kasi ‘yan,” Amorado told the Varsitarian.
“We cannot limit AI; we better prepare. How do you prepare? Teach them, the schools and the teachers, educators how to detect the mechanism; teach them how to detect the abuses,” he added.
UST has yet to publicly release an institutional policy governing the use of AI in academic work, though detection software TurnItIn has been integrated into the school’s learning management system, Canvas.
In comparison, the University of the Philippines published guidelines for the responsible use of AI in August 2023, while Ateneo de Manila University released its own set of regulations in November 2024.
During the forum, Amorado also launched his book “Pedagogy of Fraud: Cheating Practices in Online Classes,” which tackled academic dishonesty during the Covid-19 pandemic.
His research found that the hurried shift to online platforms during the pandemic, coupled with the rise of AI, contributed to the significant increase in dishonest practices among students.
The study revealed that three out of five students engaged in online cheating during the pandemic, with common practices including plagiarism, identity fraud in attending online classes, and using search engines during exams.
“Cheaters by nature will cheat more in online classes; honest students will be seduced to cheat in online classes… There will be a lot of pressure for other students to cheat online. Why? Because of the distance, anonymity, and the opportunity,” he said.
Amorado called for precise measures to address these issues, as well as shifting to performance-based assessment and using technology like Turnitin and SafeAssign to prevent academic dishonesty.
‘Too early for blanket regulation on AI’
In a response, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chair of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, emphasized that it is too early to determine how and where to regulate AI use in education.
Instead of Congress proposing blanket legislation to govern AI use in schools, Gatchalian recommended that the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) be tasked with developing these regulations.
“It’s still very early to say where we regulate it and which sector should be regulated,” Gatchalian said. “So we left it to the implementing agencies to come up with their own department and regulatory memorandums to regulate the use of artificial intelligence.”
Gatchalian said no legislative measure had been introduced to regulate AI use in schools.
“We’re still looking. Because it’s moving so fast, it’s adapting so fast that by the time we come up with laws, it’s already evolved to another thing. That’s why we want the agencies to be adaptable in terms of the use of AI,” he said.
This year’s forum had the theme “Educational Reforms in Online Pedagogy and Artificial Intelligence.”
Organized by the Hubert H. Humphrey Alumni Philippines, the 74th Humphrey Voices Series is part of the fellows’ activity during their one-year stint in the Global Leadership Forum in Washington.
The Humphrey Fellowship program is a Fulbright exchange activity funded by the United States and administered by the Institute of International Education. with reports from Amanda Luella A. Rivera and Carlo Jose H. Ruga
