Brown University Suspects AI Cheating Scandal

CSProfKGD · x · 2026-07-09

A Brown University economics professor suspected students of using AI to cheat on their midterm assignments: take-home midterm scores were abnormally high, the class average far exceeded historical levels, and some answers featured phrasing similar to ChatGPT.

The professor subsequently moved the final exam offline, making it worth half the overall grade. If the grade distributions between the two exams didn't align, the final exam alone would determine the final grade. Consequently, 27 students skipped the final, 22 of whom had received perfect scores on the midterm; among the 59 students who took the exam, 19 failed, and the average score plummeted from 96 to 48.

Related event: Brown Professor's Anti-AI In-Person Exam Sees Scores Halved(7 posts)→

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