GPT and Its Implications for Assessment in University Language Courses

This presentation considers the impacts that GPT is having on the assessment of non-native English speakers at a language centre in a university in Hong Kong. This presentation starts with a brief summary of how computer assisted language learning (CALL) has developed over the last few decades to bring us to this point in mid-2023 where we have a chatbot that can have human-like conversations with the user. It will then review some of the presenter’s interactions with chatGPT including writing answers to common assessment questions at university. These interactions demonstrate that GPT can produce plausible answers which could be used by students as a submission for their assessments. This raises many questions. The presentation will then examine the initial actions that the language centre took to try to combat the use of ChatGPT, and then discuss the further measures that are being considered to integrate GPT technologies into the learning, teaching and assessment of students. While there is unease among some teachers about the integration of this technology into language subjects, there is a growing feeling that GPT tools cannot be ‘put back into the box’ and that rather than trying to hide them, students should be helped to use them appropriately and effectively.