An academic at the Australian National University has accused it of a “hysterical” response to students using AI to cheat, as tertiary institutions rush to shore up the credibility of assessments.
But a colleague warned Australia is in danger of “shipping our national intellectual capability” to companies in California and China if educational rigour is not restored.
The Canberra institution is among the universities trying to counter the widespread use of AI amid concerns students are using the technology to cheat, or not adequately learning.
The 2025 Australian Digital Inclusion Index found 78.9% of secondary and tertiary students were using generative AI.
ANU has released a consultation paper to academic and teaching staff with three options, including classifying assessments as “secure” – completely free from the risk of AI cheating – or “insecure”. Another option would require students to declare in which stages of an assessment AI was used.
One ANU academic told Guardian Australia they supported the university’s moves, but said the process across the sector had so far been “panicked”.
“Everyone is adjusting in a panicked way, which is aggravated by a lack of resources to support teaching,” they said. “It makes the shift to secure assessment really complicated.”
Another ANU academic was critical of the university, and said it was not adequately consulting on the changes, warning they could unwind some of the progress in making assessments more inclusive for students with a disability or caring responsibilities.
“This is not an earnest consultation, this is a reactionary response, perhaps one would argue a hysterical response,” they said. “We are at a point of panic now. That panic has resulted in proposals that could see inclusion go backwards.”
The academic said their faculty had already issued draft guidelines ahead of the second semester, pushing for greater on-campus assessment.
“Teaching begins in less than two weeks … we’re being asked to do more at very short notice, with an utter lack of training.”
ANU law professor, Will Bateman, who leads research projects on the regulation of AI, said combating the infiltration of AI use in universities across Australia was critical to stop intellectual capability being shifted overseas.
“If we don’t address the erosion of the norms and rigour in our education created by AI, we are just shipping our national intellectual capability to companies in California and China,” he said.
Bateman said securing assessments did not mean all assessments would be in person, but that technology should be better equipped to respond to AI use.
“Responding to AI doesn’t automatically mean sending students back to exam halls en masse, but we need serious investment in fully-secure devices to ensure that students are actually learning the material we teach and to assure people outside the university that the degrees we…
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