Generative AI: a transformative force at TCU

ChatGPT

ChatGPT is the most used AI tool, with 66% of students in higher education claiming to utilize it in their studies, according to the global AI student survey. Launched in November 2022 by OpenAI, the chatbot was trained using reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF), which uses conversations from human AI trainers to create a dialogue response format.

Sophomore pre-business major Elle Nicholas said she started using ChatGPT as a first-year student in October 2024. Nicholas subscribes to ChatGPT Plus, for $20 a month.

The chatbot helped her drastically improve both her grades and productivity, she said.

"I use ChatGPT for every class," Nicholas said. "It helps me complete my biology exams, checks my economics answers before I turn them in and it brainstorms writing ideas for my English class."

But Nicholas said she is not reliant on ChatGPT.

“I could do all the same things on my own, but ChatGPT helps me save so much time and mental energy,” she said.

Maddie White, a sophomore accounting major, said ChatGPT boosted her productivity when she was a first-year student and it helped her craft a strongly-worded resume.

Still, White said she worries her over-reliance on the chatbot has damaged her critical thinking skills.

“Using ChatGPT so heavily meant I didn't have to concentrate or think as hard, which I believe has harmed my ability to think critically and creatively,” White said.

NotebookLM

Some TCU students are using NotebookLM, a generative AI application, to help with their coursework. Developed by Google Labs, NotebookLM is a research and note-taking tool that works as a personal assistant to help students study uploaded materials.

Luke Farr, a junior majoring in biology, said during his sophomore year, NotebookLM was a time-saving tool that helped him balance his pre-med workload with clubs, religious obligations and other on-campus involvements during the spring semester.

Farr said NotebookLM was the most useful when he studied for cell biology. He said he uploaded 50-minute lecture recordings, notes and class PowerPoints to the the tool, which in turn generated study guides that provided a broad overview of the materials with key terms defined.

NotebookLM’s Audio Overview feature, which creates podcasts from uploaded materials, was the most advantageous, Farr said. He described the feature as a dialogue between two AI-generated personas that sounded like normal conversation.

“LM’s Audio Overview feature allows me to listen to an engaging podcast about my uploaded material while doing chores or going on a walk,” he said. “The AI people even used human filler words like ‘um’ and ‘like’ during the podcast, which shocked me the most.”

Listen here for a podcast generated by NotebookLM that helped Farr study cell membrane transport for cellular biology.

He compared NotebookLM's Beta Mode to visiting a professor in office hours. He said it let him ask the AI-generated personas questions by audio and receive responses by podcast form.

“I was able to ask the AI people by audio more questions than I was able to ask any professor during office hours because of their packed schedules,” Farr said.

Equipping faculty with generative AI skills

As part of TCU’s effort to invest in AI infrastructure, the Koehler Center for Instruction, Innovation and Engagement is equipping faculty with the ability to effectively implement generative AI in their teaching.

The Koehler Center started offering generative AI faculty workshops in January 2025. 

Dr. Rebecca Putman, a faculty developer at the Koehler Center, led 22 generative AI workshops. Putman said the faculty members who attend the workshops were motivated by teaching excellence.

“They truly care about the student experience in their classrooms at TCU, and they want to integrate AI meaningfully into their courses so that students are successful now and in their future careers,” she said.

The Koehler Center offered five categories of generative AI workshops this semester.

Putman directed eight AI 101 workshops, which she repeated every month. These workshops offer a brief introduction to generative AI in higher education. They focus on modeling AI literacy and ethical use of AI tools.

Eight workshops focused on leveraging generative AI to integrate it meaningfully into assignments and communicate clear expectations of AI use through syllabi and rubrics. These workshops also focus on limiting AI use in assignments focused on developing foundational knowledge.

The Koehler Center offered two workshops on AI challenges and solutions in writing emphasis classes, two on boosting efficiency through generative AI and two on how to create and use custom generative pre-trained transformers (GPTs).