Artificial Intelligence Meets Business Education: A PC Business Professor’s Approach
By Fiona Lutz ’24, ’25G
Undergraduate students in the Scanlon Financial Resource and Information Lab
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in society has been on the rise over the last few years, and many are curious about its potential impact on business education as it becomes an increasingly accessible tool for students.
In business education, the benefits of AI technology may prove useful in developing future business leaders. According to Forbes, generative AI tools could become “a catalyst for educational transformation”, in which the benefits are plentiful. Through use of AI tools, students can enhance analytical skills, receive real-time feedback, improve learning efficiency, and develop their understanding of evolving technologies.
At the Providence College School of Business, students and faculty alike are exploring opportunities to incorporate such tools in the classroom. Last month, PC hosted its annual Business Ethics Competition, and this year’s topic asked student contestants to consider the ethical implications of utilizing artificial intelligence in the classroom. For PC business professors, like Jonathan Jackson, Ph.D., navigating AI tools in their courses is an entirely new landscape.
Because the school of business has not yet adapted an official standardized policy for AI in classrooms, Jackson explained the use of AI integration varies between courses, and he encourages students to “use AI as a tool to enhance their learning, integrating it into discussions and assignments when relevant”.
Students in Jackson’s Operations Management course are encouraged to utilize AI tools to explore real-world applications of concepts they’ve learned in class, aid in brainstorming problem-solving strategies, and assist them in forming well-rounded arguments for operations decisions. While specific applications of the tools vary between courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level, Jackson explains that he is actively exploring effective ways in which AI tools could be of use to his students to best enhance their learning outcomes.
However, the decision to authorize use of new technologies like AI does not come without its challenges. For many professors at PC, it has been hard to distinguish the use of AI as an impactful tool versus from a potential academic integrity violation. While the college has updated its guidelines to reflect the recent growth of AI’s role in the violation of plagiarism and academic integrity standards, many faculty members, like Jackson are exploring how to appropriately integrate such tools into their curriculum.
For his courses, Jackson explained that “setting clear expectations is essential for guiding AI use”, and by explicitly addressing responsible practices of AI tools, students can understand that these programs should be used to support their own, original work, rather than replace it. Jackson’s approach encourages students to take accountability and remain transparent in their use of AI tools; he asks that students disclose use of AI in their assignment submissions, like one would when citing sources.
Even with his steady approach of introducing AI tools into the business classroom, Jackson remains cautious of the ever-evolving nature of Artificial intelligence programs. When prompted with his thoughts on the concept of a Providence College-specific AI platform catered towards students, Jackson remarked that while a custom-tailored platform for the school could be beneficial for encouraging responsible usage of the technology, he shared, “I have reservations about its ability to keep pace with AI’s rapid advancements.” While much is still unknown about the future impact of AI tools in business education, it is evident that such technology has a potential to create a strong and meaningful presence in the classroom if utilized appropriately, and if faculty are willing to provide students with an opportunity to discover its significance in the field.
