At ACED Qualifications, we understand that Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, such as ChatGPT, Claude and Notebook LM are becoming a normal part of everyday life, education and work for some. You may use AI to support your learning, not replace it.
We do not ban learners from using AI. AI can be a useful research and support tool, but the work you submit for your qualification must still be your own work and show your own knowledge, understanding, ideas and skills.
AI can help you learn. It should not do your qualification for you.
You CAN use AI to:
- help you research a topic
- explain something you do not understand
- suggest websites, books or other sources that you can then investigate yourself
- brainstorm initial ideas
- suggest questions you might want to research
- help you think of possible approaches to a project
- check spelling or grammar
- suggest ways you could improve work you have already written
- help you understand assessor feedback.
You SHOULD NOT use AI to:
- write an assignment for you
- generate an answer and submit it as your own
- copy and paste AI-generated paragraphs into your work
- ask AI to rewrite an answer so that it appears to be your own work
- use AI to complete a skill that you are being assessed on
- ask AI to analyse or evaluate something when the purpose of the assessment is for you to demonstrate your own analysis or evaluation
- generate creative work and present it as entirely your own if the assessment is designed to assess your own creative skills and development.
Creative subjects
AI can be useful for generating starting points, researching artists, photographers or designers, exploring themes and brainstorming ideas. However, your portfolio must show your own creative journey.
We need to be able to see how your ideas have developed through research, experimentation, practical work, decisions, mistakes, changes and improvements.
Your final work should demonstrate your skills and ideas. If you use AI
Please be open about it. If AI has played a significant part in your research or development, briefly explain how you used it. For example:
“I used ChatGPT to suggest some initial areas I could research. I then researched these independently and used the information to develop my own response.”
You may also be asked to include AI within your list of sources or references.
Your work must sound like you. We are not expecting perfect grammar, complicated vocabulary or university-level writing.
We want to see your understanding. Writing something clearly in your own words is much more valuable than submitting an impressive answer that you cannot explain yourself.
If we are unsure whether work is your own
If an assessor has concerns about whether submitted work is genuinely yours, we may ask you to:
- explain part of your work in your own words or answer some additional questions
- provide drafts, notes, photographs or evidence of your development
- amend or resubmit part of the assignment. This is not about trying to catch learners out. It is part of our responsibility as an approved centre to make sure that qualifications are awarded for work completed by the learner. AI detection software will not be used on its own as proof that a learner has misused AI. Misuse of AI: Submitting work created entirely by AI as though you created it yourself may be considered plagiarism or assessment malpractice by NCFE.
