Quebec publishes (finally) guides to use AI in CEGEPs and universities

Almost three years after the arrival of conversational artificial intelligence (AI) in the life of students and a few days from the start of the school year in CEGEPS and universities, the Minister of Higher Education, Pascale Déry, reveals two documents to guide educational establishments in “a deployment and responsible and security integration of the AI”.

The first is a frame of reference resulting from the work of the consultation body which met last year to discuss the challenges linked to theIA in higher education. The idea is to emphasize the importance of democratizing theIA and to guide A deployment that benefits everyonewe write in this document.

The second is a practical guide prepared by the consortium in IA Ivado for educational establishments, not the teaching staff or the student population.

These are two complementary tools that will support the network, because we have to adapt to this new reality. And I think it is important to have practical tools that can serve as a roadmap for higher education institutionssummarizes Minister Déry in an interview with Radio-Canada.

The challenge was in size, recognizes the minister: to propose a unifying vision of the use of theIAwithout however encroaching on professional autonomy and freedom of education. It’s a start. It is two tools that we give with a good base, a common foundation to support the network. [Et ensuite]the network will take what it wants to take in there.

Nothing compulsory for educational institutions

The practical guide indicates that each establishment should have clear rules in terms of development and deployment of theIA. But Minister Déry specifies that there is nothing prescriptive or compulsory for CEGEPs and universities.

There is nothing that we are going to demand as government. And that was well understood since the start of the side and the othershe explains. If I had come to impose something, honestly, it wouldn’t have happened in the networkadds Pascale Déry, recalling that at the beginning of the exchanges, in the spring of 2023, several actors involved had firmly affirmed the importance of respecting the autonomy of CEGEPs and universities in their care of theIA.

The institutions are autonomous and are all very different. […] And so I cannot, as minister, legislate, mark or frame automatically, systematic, wall with wall. It can’t work.

The idea of the exercise was to reach a common and consensual approach, so that there is a certain consistency within the networksummarizes Ms. Déry. It is a reality with which we must live and adapt. But it takes tags. And this framework is not I who can impose it. It is really the institutions that must work on their own framework.

She adds that it would have been futile to legislate in this area, given the fluid nature of the development of technologies ofIA. As long as I impose a framework, it will already be expired. Technology evolves so quickly that it takes institutional policies that will evolve and that will be dynamic.

Guidelines after eight sessions with AI

These documents lead to the offices of directors and managers of CEGEPS and universities a few days before the start of the classes, eight sessions after the arrival of theIA generative.

At the beginning of the summer, the collegial and university student federations, among others, had strongly condemned the postponement of the publication of these tools at the end of the summer. We are still in the first step, while theIA advance at full speeddenounced Antoine Dervieux, of the Quebec Collegiate Student Federation (FECQ). Nothing will be ready for the next school yearadded to his part Etienne Paré, of the Student Union of Quebec (UEQ).

When asked if it took too long before making these guides available for CEGEPS and universities, which receive them more than two years after the day on artificial intelligence in higher education (new window)Minister Déry justifies these deadlines.

At first, it was a bit of panic, you had to calm the game, bring everyone together. […] Work [de l’Instance de concertation nationale sur l’IA en enseignement supérieur lancée à l’automne 2024]honestly, were relatively short. […] I did my best to respect the deadlines we had. And we made sure that the whole network is involved in reflection and writing [de ce cadre de référence]she explains.

Everything in its time. We did things in order. […] We worked in accelerated mode to be able to have these tools for this start of the school year.

Despite the criticisms formulated at the beginning of the summer according to which the discussion of the body had been too general and with an a priori too conciliatory towards the emergence of theIAPascale Déry considers herself satisfied with the work done and the collaboration of the actors of the network. We did this tool with them and for them. […] I expect criticism, because I always expect criticism. But I can tell you that it is the network itself which was called to work and share these conclusions.

Minister Déry maintains that the establishments did not stay their arms crossed until the arrival of these tools. However, Radio-Canada revealed in the winter of 2024 that few universities had acted to supervise theIA.

Maintain humans at the center of the educational relationship

In the second document sent by the Ministry of Higher Education, examples of uses of theIA are listed, such as the use of intelligent tutoring systems for students, an intelligent educational assistant for the teaching staff or the automated synthesis of scientific writings or the generation of hypotheses for the research environment.

Once again, it is not a question of being prescriptive, repeats Minister Déry, but of giving ideas of practices, which already exist and which are used elsewhere, while ensuring a critical mind and maintaining the human At the heart of all this.

These examples are examples still fairly known. Now, do institutions want to use them? Always use them wisely. There are always advantages and disadvantages to all the solutions that we will offershe adds.

Human remains the central actor. […] AI therefore becomes an additional lever to support human interactions and strengthen educational and professional links.

And because we know that it has its limits, this technology, it also takes transparency. You have to drop the taboos and you have to be transparent and everyone uses theIA in the network [reconnaisse] that he uses itadds Pascale Déry.

The documents published speak of the importance of respect for intellectual integrity, but make little reference to the risks of plagiarism, which worry the faculty of CEGEs and universities. Minister Déry says she is well aware of the fears related to plagiarism, but believes thatYou have to be careful not to put all the students in the same basket. It is true that there are cases of plagiarism, we cannot deny it. But there are already codes of discipline, conduct, which have been updated to integrate the portion in the institutions IA.

Others concrete actions are expected in the coming months from the Ministry of Higher Education in order to support establishmentsas the creation of a tool box containing concrete cases of using theIA within establishments.