AI-enabled cheating is forcing some schools to go analog

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Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert

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Henry Chandonnet

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AI is starting to make some classrooms look a little more old school.

The University of Chicago Law School is requiring first-year students to keep their laptops closed in class this fall, as part of a broader strategy to ensure students learn to think independently as artificial intelligence becomes ubiquitous in the legal profession.

The move comes as colleges across the country grapple with how generative AI is reshaping higher education. Business Insider reported earlier this month that Brown University said it recently disciplined dozens of students after uncovering what administrators described as a widespread AI-assisted cheating scandal, underscoring how difficult the technology has made traditional take-home assignments and remote assessments.

Rather than trying to ban AI outright, Chicago Law says it is redesigning its curriculum to separate the skills students should develop on their own from those where AI should be embraced.

"We need to make sure that the students are learning to think for themselves," Adam Chilton, dean of the University of Chicago Law School, told Business Insider. At the same time, he said, "We can't just naively try to pretend that you can turn off AI or that students won't use it or they don't need to know it."

The school's new strategy includes laptop-free first-year classes, in-person proctored exams that prevent students from accessing outside materials, and oral defenses for major research papers to ensure students can explain and defend their work. It is also expanding AI instruction by integrating the technology into legal writing courses, adding more AI-focused classes, and providing students access to legal AI tools, including Harvey and Legora.

Chilton said educators have been "a little bit asleep at the wheel" by continuing to assign take-home work that students can complete with AI "without thinking for yourself, without learning for yourself."

He said reports of AI cheating at Brown, Harvard, and other schools reinforced concerns that students could advance through their education without developing rigorous reasoning skills.

The challenge, he said, is that AI has become indispensable in legal practice. Law firms increasingly expect new hires to use technology efficiently and responsibly, making an outright ban unrealistic.

Instead, Chicago's approach is to create what Chilton called "space for both of these modes of learning" — teaching students to think without AI first, then teaching them how to use it ethically once they've built those foundational skills.

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Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert is a senior reporter on Business Insider's West Coast team. When she's not writing about trending business and tech news, from the latest supply chain snarls or advancements in AI, she covers the food and restaurant industries, specifically companies such as Starbucks and McDonald's.Some of her prior areas of focus have included coverage of the Supreme Court and emerging technologies such as quantum computing.Katherine has worked on award-nominated projects and has appeared on Good Morning America, NBC, CNN, and other outlets to discuss her reporting.Prior to joining Business Insider, she covered retail, hospitality, and nonprofits at the San Fernando Valley Business Journal and received a master's degree in investigative reporting from the University of Southern California.Reach outDo you have feedback or a story tip? Contact Katherine on Signal at byktl.50, or email her at [email protected] her on Twitter and Instagram @scrawlgirl.Some of her recent scoops, exclusives, and original stories include: Starbucks set up a new office. It's a 5-minute drive from the CEO's California home.Inside Starbucks' crackdown on cup notesEndless Shrimp was Red Lobster's rock bottom. Now it's clawing back.Chipotle's new PAC signals a change in how the company engages in politicsKFC lost its footing in the Chicken Wars. Now it's gunning for a 'Kentucky Fried Comeback.'A few other highlights include: Clarence Thomas raised him 'as a son.' Now he's facing 25-plus years on weapons and drug charges.Call her Ivanka Kushner'Maybe I'll just resign:' Federal workers react to DOGE productivity emailSpaceX launches cause late-night booms that rattle windows, set off car alarms, and may damage property. Locals are pushing back.The US-China tech race is moving from chips to the raw materials they're made of

Henry Chandonnet

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