A recently surfaced artificial intelligence tool, capable of completing entire online college courses for students, has sparked conversation among educators. The rise of “Einstein AI” raises questions about the future of online learning and academic integrity.
Einstein AI was reported to have the capability to integrate directly with learning management systems like Canvas. According to descriptions circulating among educators, the tool could log into courses, watch lecture videos, write papers, take quizzes and complete assignments on behalf of students. In essence, the software could act as a stand-in for a student in a fully online course.
This technology has since drawn a large amount of backlash from educators and is under legal scrutiny for potentially violating Canvas’ terms of service. It has been taken offline, but the brief emergence of the tool triggered conversations across higher education about how institutions should respond to incredibly advanced AI tools.
“This is a big question and a big issue,” said LPC President Dyrell Foster. “We’re all about student learning. … We want the students to do the learning, not the technology.”
Identifying misuse of AI tools is especially difficult in asynchronous online courses, in which instructors and students may never meet in person. College leaders say they are discussing potential policies around AI use in coursework. Currently, expectations and guidelines are determined by individual instructors.
“The biggest concern, obviously, is academic integrity and academic dishonesty. So that’s really where we want to support faculty, to identify when there is academic dishonesty taking place in the classrooms,” Foster said. “Our responsibility is to ensure that when a student earns a degree or certificate or credential, that it represents authentic learning.”
Faculty members who first encountered Einstein AI said the tools’s usage and purpose was initially confusing. Kathleen King, instructional technology coordinator and co-chair of LPC’s Distance Education Committee, originally believed the platform was designed to detect AI-generated work, similar to tools such as Turnitin. However, further research revealed an entirely different function.
“There’s a very scary section of the tool where the student is essentially replaced by Einstein as a proxy,” King said. “It can watch lectures, take notes and even do homework for you whether you’re present or asleep.”
King shared the discovery with the college’s Academic Senate AI subcommittee, where King said many faculty members had not previously heard of this new technology. Conversations arose on how to structure classes with the rise of advanced AI tools. Instructors must rethink how they evaluate student learning.
King described how she has begun shifting toward using more oral and listening-based assessments in her Spanish classes as a result. “I’m restructuring the way I do assessments because of AI,” King said. “Oral exams are much harder for AI to replicate when you’re interacting directly with the student.”
Other instructors say the issue goes beyond cheating and speaks to the broader relationship between students and educators.
“AI brings cheating to a whole new level and threatens the integrity of teaching and learning,” said Catherine Eagan, coordinator of the global studies department.
According to Eagan instructors are emphasizing interactive learning environments that require direct student engagement. The goal is to ensure instructors are working with actual human beings.
“We also spend a lot of time discussing cognitive development, original thinking, voice, intrinsic motivation and growth mindset with students,” Eagan said. “Many students value these things and want to actually learn.”
Even as colleges learn to combat these challenges, administrators emphasize that AI itself is not the issue. The issue is how it’s being used to override the learning process and taking the work out from earning a degree.
For many educators, the emergence of tools like Einstein AI raises a fundamental question about the value of education. AI can now “replace” the learning process. It cannot replace an educated mind, however.
“You can lose your backpack or your bicycle,” King said. “But whatever you learn stays in your mind. No one can take that knowledge away from you.”
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TOP PHOTO: Einstein AI could reportedly “replace” students in online classes. Professors questioned the value of education even after Einstein AI was taken offline. (Illustration by Aaliyah Gholamipour/The Express)
Angelina An is a staff writer for The Express. Follow her on X @angiebee_919.
