The AIAS supports thoughtful and intentional decisions about when and how to use AI in assignments. For example, you might allow AI for brainstorming (“AI Planning”) but require a student-generated draft for the final submission. Alternatively, you could let students use AI to receive feedback on their own drafts and ask them to critically evaluate which AI suggestions were useful and why (Perkins, Furze, Roe, & MacVaugh, 2024b). This approach emphasizes skill development, including analyzing ideas, interpreting feedback, making decisions, and critically evaluating AI output. 

How you use the AIAS will depend on your course learning goals and context. No level of the AIAS is considered ideal for all situations. Some assignments, such as personal reflections, may not require AI, while others may benefit from it, especially when the tasks mirror circumstances where AI is part of professional practice. Designing “authentic” assignments (Center for Teaching, 2022) helps students understand when AI is appropriate and gives instructors a chance to guide thoughtful and ethical use, preparing students for future experiences. 

Because AI detection tools are often unreliable (Office of Teaching, Learning, and Technology, 2024; Weber-Wulff et al., 2023), many educators are shifting away from trying to completely eliminate AI use. Instead, they are adopting a process-focused approach that highlights the learning that occurs throughout the assignment, from generating ideas to submitting the final work. While GenAI can create polished reports or solutions, it cannot replace human thinking and the step-by-step growth that occurs as students work through each task that makes up a meaningful assignment (Latterner, 2023). 

The AIAS helps instructors design assignments that make student thinking visible (Roe et al., 2024). Instructors can do this by breaking assignments into stages with separate submissions, such as topic selection, outlining, drafting, and revision. They can also ask students to reflect on their use of GenAI or share transcripts showing how it influenced their thinking. These stages could even be incorporated into in-class discussions, activities, or peer feedback sessions, where instructors could provide feedback in real time throughout the process. 

Students need clear instructions about when and how they can use AI tools, what ethical rules to follow, and how their work will be graded. The AIAS gives instructors and students a common way to discuss these rules. For instance, if an assignment is marked “AI Collaboration,” students can use AI to brainstorm ideas or create drafts, but they must also show their own analysis and decision-making along the way.  

Assignment transparency means showing exactly how AI can be used at each step, from planning to revising to turning in the final product. It also connects these steps to the skills students will use in real life. Sharing grading rules, rubrics, and examples helps students understand what good work looks like when AI is involved. The AIAS can also be paired with other assignment frameworks, like Transparent Assignment Design, to further clarify the assignment’s purpose, tasks, and grading criteria (Winkelmes, n.d.). 

The AIAS encourages instructors and students to engage in dialogue about AI, showing examples where AI falls short of human knowledge or skills, helping students understand why AI is limited in some circumstances but not in others. This approach builds trust, supports ethical use, and prepares students for contexts beyond the academy where AI may play a role (Perkins, Roe, & Furze, 2024).

Pick one assignment you are considering or reconsidering in light of AI. What should students learn or be able to do from it? For example: Does it teach skills they will need in real life? Is it similar to tasks they might do in their future jobs? How will you know if students have reached these goals? Take a few minutes to write a short description of your assignment with these questions in mind.

Be specific about what students should be able to do when they finish the assignment. How will you focus on the assignment process, not just the final product? How will they show their progress? What should students do to demonstrate they have met the learning goals? Take a few minutes to write this down. 

Unpack the main steps or tasks students will need to complete for the assignment. (See an example of a “less transparent” assignment unpacked into individual tasks, and thus labeled “more transparent".)

Next, put a ⭐ next to any task that is especially important for reaching the learning goals. Think about how AI could be used in each step and decide if it is okay for students to use it there.

For each assignment step or task, consider whether and how AI might help and clearly explain to students what is allowed and why. Tell them why using AI is acceptable (or not) so they understand how it fits into their learning. You can also plan ways to practice these skills in class, like through discussions, activities, or feedback from classmates. If these “scaffolded” steps will be turned in separately – a great practice for making sure students stay on the right track – think about spacing out due dates so students can complete the assignment in manageable parts during the semester.