Why Should I Use the GenAI Use Icons?

Expectations for student use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) vary widely across courses and instructors, and these differences can be confusing for students. The GenAI Use Icons were designed for faculty to clearly communicate what is allowed or not allowed in terms of GenAI use by students.

By making expectations more transparent, the GenAI Use Icons can be used to help students better understand how to approach their work, which can lead to increased academic confidence, a stronger sense of belonging, and improved skill development (Anderson et al., 2013; Howard et al., 2017; Winkelmes, 2014).

Users are encouraged to use these icons as a simple tool to clearly convey expectations around student GenAI use.

What GenAI Use Icons Are Available?

There are three levels of use:

GenAI Use Is Allowed
GenAI Use Is Limited
GenAI Use Is Not Permitted

Note, these GenAI icons are intended to be used with the descriptive header text and one of the suggested styles included in this resource. Using the GenAI icons on their own requires the use alt text. If you opt to use these icons in an alternate manner, please make sure to add the descriptive text (e.g., GenAI Use is Allowed, GenAI Use is Limited, and/or GenAI Use is Not Permitted) when uploading the image in Canvas in the Alt text field provided.

What Decisions Do I Need to Make to Use GenAI Use Icons?

Decide whether to use GenAI Use Icons.
Decide whether you will apply the icons at the course level or on an assignment-by-assignment basis:
- Course-level application should be included in the syllabus module. The language included with the selected icon would apply to all of the assignments in the course.
- The assignment-by-assignment approach allows you to tailor GenAI icon usage to meet the pedagogical needs of each assignment.
Determine what level of GenAI use is allowed.
Choose your preferred GenAI icon styles from the options provided in this resource.
Update your syllabus policy language to reflect your decisions.
If you have a getting started (i.e., student orientation) lesson, consider making updates to include GenAI-related information and resources.

What Design Styles Are Available?

There are four design styles to choose from:

Icons in Color Boxes
Icons in Color Boxes (No Background Color)
Icons in Show/Hide Boxes
Icons in Show/Hide Boxes (No Background Color)

See the following pages for more detail.

How Can I Add These Icons to My Course?

On the following pages, you will find HTML that can be added to any Canvas page. You will need to copy the provided code and paste it in the HTML editor to your desired location.

Note: For assistance, refer to the Using This Resource page of the Introduction module of this resource.

References

Anderson, A. D., Hunt, A. N., Powell, R. E., & Dollar, C. B. (2013). Student perceptions of teaching transparency. The Journal of Effective Teaching, 13(2), 38–47. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1092137.pdf

Howard, T. O., Winkelmes, M. A., & Shegog, M. (2020). Transparency teaching in the virtual classroom: Assessing the opportunities and challenges of integrating transparency teaching methods with online learning. Journal of Political Science Education, 16(2), 198–211. https://doi.org/10.1080/15512169.2018.1550420

Winkelmes, M. (2014). Transparency in learning and teaching project. TILT Higher Ed. https://tilthighered.com/transparency.