Cover illustration for Study help without cheating (integrity rules)

Study help without cheating (integrity rules)

How to use AI for studying, brainstorming, and editing — while staying honest and learning along the way.

AI is a tutor, not a ghostwriter. Use it to understand, organize, and practice — then do the actual work yourself.

Green light: use AI for this

  • Explaining a concept you are stuck on (ask "explain like I am new")
  • Creating flashcards or practice questions from your notes
  • Outlining an essay you will write yourself
  • Proofreading grammar and clarity (not rewriting whole sections)
  • Suggesting sources to explore further

Red light: do not use AI for this

  • Writing an essay or assignment you submit as your own
  • Generating answers for a quiz or test
  • Copying AI output without understanding it
  • Asking AI to paraphrase someone else's work to avoid plagiarism detection
  • Creating fake citations or references

Prompts that help you learn

Explain [topic] like I am completely new to it. Use an everyday analogy.
Create 5 practice questions about [topic] at a college level. Give me the answers after I try them.
Here is my essay outline. Suggest one stronger argument and one weaker argument I should reconsider.
Rewrite this sentence to be clearer, but keep my original meaning: [paste sentence]

If you cannot explain the answer in your own words, you do not understand it yet. Use AI to get there — but make sure you arrive yourself.

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