Conclusion

In this section, we explored the pivotal role of oral exams in fostering direct, dynamic interaction between educators and students, enhancing personalized feedback, and mitigating the risks of academic dishonesty. Both oral exams and Nicol’s inner feedback strategies not only align with traditional educational values but also adapt to the digital age’s demands by encouraging critical thinking and real-time problem-solving skills, while increasing the “AI-immunity” of assessments.

We also highlighted the significance of low-stakes activities utilizing ChatGPT. These activities offer students a safe environment to experiment with AI tools, develop prompt engineering skills, and critically engage with AI-generated content, including identifying biases and misinformation. Such tasks prepare students for the inevitable integration of AI in their future careers, ensuring they are not only proficient in using these tools but also aware of their limitations and ethical implications. By blending oral assessments with innovative low-stakes activities, educators can provide a comprehensive, forward-thinking education that equips students with the skills needed to navigate and succeed in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

In an ideal world, departments, faculties, and institutions would work in concert to create exposure to and training in LLM-based tools across the curriculum, scaffolding and expanding activities and assessments across courses and throughout undergraduate and graduate degrees. Students would all be engaged in discussions around ethics and bias, accuracy and efficacy, and discipline-appropriate use of GenAI tools.