Best Practice: Acknowledge AI Use and Cite AI-Generated Content

Clearly show if and how generative AI was used in the creation of a text.

Applicable Principles (the why)

Generative AI Literacy

• Instructors and learners need to know how and when to use AI appropriately.

Academic Integrity

• Learners are responsible for doing the work to learn.
• Transparency regarding how AI has been used can help support academic integrity and learning outcomes.

Practical Application (the what)

When generative AI is used as part of the process of producing a text, whether that is audiovisual, a live presentation, and/or a written text, its use should be clearly attributed. This can be done with an acknowledgment of AI use, typically before a text. This includes:

•  which generative AI tool was used, 
• how the generative AI was used, and
• the degree to which AI-generated material influenced the finished material. 

This may include the prompt and other data that was provided to the AI model (e.g., source images, training/fine-tune data). 

Any text or data taken directly, paraphrased/revised, or summarized from generative AI output should be cited specifically in the text. AI-generated text rewritten into a writer’s own words should be cited as described above.

Instructors are discouraged from using AI detection software or accusing learners of attempting to plagiarize by using AI. Instead, they should thoroughly discuss when and how to use generative AI, clarifying the expectations around the use of generative AI in their field, and demonstrating straightforward ways to share how AI was used. Expectations should be clear, and learners should be supported in learning good attribution habits.

As it is not generally considered necessary to note grammar or other editing help, such as from peer feedback or from a word processor’s grammar check, the use of an AI to check grammar or lightly edit occasional word choice does not generally have to be acknowledged. The use of an AI to rewrite sentences or longer sections should be noted.

Resources

The following worksheet can be used to help show how generative AI was used:

• AI worksheet draft Google Forms version 

UIUC guides for using generative AI and attribution:

• UIUC Writers Workshop Guide on Writing with Automated Technology
• CITL Guide to Generative AI Implications for Teaching & Learning
• UIUC Library Guide to Documenting Your Use of AI 

The following are current (as of March 2024) guidelines for citing generative AI in different formats:

• APA style
• Chicago style
• MLA style

Example of professional guidelines:

• IEEE guidelines for AI use and disclosure in submissions and peer review
• NIH policy on AI use in peer review process

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