Music Education: Using AI

Suitable for brainstorming, topic-generating, developing research questions,

Faculty: Please fill out the form if you'd like to preview the GenAI Module and assign it to your class.

SIFT METHOD

S – Stop 

Pause for a moment to question the validity, accuracy, and quality of the material you are using. 

I – Investigate 

Question everything you get from a GenAI tool. If GenAI gives you a citation for an article or other source, search the title and author on a search engine or UIW Libraries’ catalog to see if that article exists. If GenAI makes claims about anything, look up that claim somewhere else that you know to be more authoritative (like your textbook, an encyclopedia, or UIW Libraries’ resources). 

F – Find Better Coverage 

GenAI tools can help you get started learning about a topic by providing basic background information and vocabulary you can use to search in UIW Libraries’ resources, but they’re not going to be the best source of information for whatever it is you are learning about or researching. While you investigate the information GenAI tools give you, you will also be finding better coverage of that material that will be more useful for you. 

T – Trace Claims, Quotes, and Media to their origins 

Whenever a GenAI tool provides quotes or statistics, you will want to find the original source for that information. Search for the quote or statistic in a search engine. If you can’t find a source for the information, then it’s best not to trust that information as being correct or accurate.

RADAR METHOD

R – Rationale 

• Traditional source: What is the purpose of the article/ book/ website/ source? 
• GenAI tool: What is the purpose of the GenAI tool? 

A – Authority 

• Traditional source: Who is the author or creator? What credentials or experience do they have that makes them an authority on this topic? 
• GenAI tool: What sources was the GenAI tool trained on? 

D – Date 

• Traditional source: When was the source created or published? Is the information in the source current enough to be suitable for what you are going to use it for? 
• GenAI tool: What is the cutoff date for the sources the GenAI tool was trained on? How recent is its training data? 

A – Accuracy 

• Traditional source: Was the information reviewed by editors or subject experts before it was published? Do the citations and references support the author's claim? Are the references correctly cited? 
• GenAI tool: Can you verify the information with outside sources? Have you checked for hallucinations? 

R – Relevance 

• Traditional source: Does the information add something new to your knowledge of the topic? Does the information help you answer your research question? 
• GenAI tool: Does the information add something new to your knowledge of the topic? Does the information help you answer your research question? 

Before you search, organize and develop a plan.

• What is your information need?

• What will meet that need?

• How will you find those things?

• For help, contact a librarian.

**You will still need to evaluate whatever information you find, no matter what tools you use.**

Using these steps, you'll be set on the path to finding appropriate scholarly articles for your assignments. 

1. Start in the UIW Libraries webpages.

2. Find an appropriate database for your discipline (A-Z Databases list > Select Discipline at top)

3. Search for scholarly and/or peer reviewed articles.

Research Tips:

• Use the bibliographies of appropriate articles you find to find more.

• Save the citations and PDFs of the articles you find as you go.

How to find even MORE:

• Install the LibKey Nomad browser extension and link to UIW. This tool can help you get access to articles online through our subscriptions.

• Use a discovery tool like Research Rabbit or Semantic Scholar to find more articles.

A Cautionary Note:

• Tools like CoPilot, ChatGPT, and Perplexity are not optimal for finding factual information and definitely not for finding scholarly articles.

Remember, ALWAYS verify generated responses against trusted, authoritative sources available to you through the library. If anything is unclear, you can always Ask A Librarian!

Citing GenAI in Academic Work

Example of APA Style, in-text citation: 

When given a follow-up prompt of “What is a more accurate representation?” the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that “different brain regions work together to support various cognitive processes” and “the functional specialization of different regions can change in response to experience and environmental factors” (OpenAI, 2023; see Appendix A for the full transcript). 

APA Reference List Entry: 

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat 

Example of MLA Style, paraphrased in your prose: 

While the green light in The Great Gatsby might be said to chiefly symbolize four main things: optimism, the unattainability of the American dream, greed, and covetousness (“Describe the symbolism”), arguably the most important—the one that ties all four themes together—is greed. 

Example of MLA Works Cited List Entry 

“Describe the symbolism of the green light in the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald” prompt. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 8 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat. 

Regarding AMA Style 

For the AMA Manual of Style, the use of nonhuman artificial intelligence, language models, machine learning, or similar technologies cannot be listed as authors.  This does not mean do not cite their use.  If these tools are used, you should report their use if the use is beyond grammar and spelling checkers in the Acknowledge or Methods sections of their manuscripts. See sections 5.1.12 and 5.2.1.1 of the AMA Manual of Style, 11th edition. 

Use of GenAI in Educational Pursuits 

The current UIW Policy on Academic Integrity states: 

“Forms of Academic Dishonesty [include] but are not limited to...Counterfeit work - including turning in as one's own, work that was created, researched, or produced by someone else or an artificial intelligence software program.” 

Your instructors will tell you if GenAI tools may be used and to what extent. Often, you will find the course policy in the syllabus so be sure to read and understand it before using a GenAI tool in your assignments. 

What information is needed in a GenAI use disclosure? 

For classes and assignments in which use of a GenAI tool is permitted, you will likely need to disclose what specifically what you did with the tool’s assistance.  

Include these elements: 

• Which permitted use of generative AI are you acknowledging? 

• Which generative AI tool did you use (name and version)? 

• What prompt did you provide? 

• What did you use the tool for? 

• How have you used or changed the generative AI's output? 

Example:

I acknowledge the use of ChatGPT 3.5, July 20 version (https://chat.openai.com/) to generate a case study about the challenges of sustainability and labor ethics in the chocolate industry. I entered the following prompt on August 1, 2023: 

"Create a case study over the operations of a chocolate company detailing the challenges of managing chocolate supply chains in both a sustainable and ethical manner. Identify key challenges. Propose potential solutions, but do not commit to any single approach. Conclude by with questions for students to consider about how they would proceed."  

The output from these prompts was used as the case study for the assignment which was then analyzed in the remaining portion of the assignment.  

(From https://newmanu.libguides.com/ai-disclosure)