University staff and student perspectives on competent and ethical use of AI: uncovering similarities and divergences

We investigated the similarities and differences in understanding among UK-based university staff and students regarding AI literacy, in terms of competent and ethical use of AI tools. This study builds on existing research revealing both wide use of AI tools in higher education, but also a lack of shared understanding among stakeholder groups on what constitutes competent and ethical use of AI. This study is one of the first to combine insights from staff and students, illustrating specific concerns over AI competence and ethical implications in granular detail. The results reveal a significant disparity in the use of AI tools between students and staff, particularly in the adoption of text-based or conversational GenAI tools (cGenAI). Students reported extensive use of cGenAI tools for a range of tasks, while staff engagement was generally limited to brainstorming ideas or generating teaching tasks. Although the use of cGenAI is seen by most as AI competence, nuanced differences emerged between staff and student opinion depending on the application of the AI tool. Ethical issues in both groups were prominent, although staff reported more negative systemic concerns regarding inherent bias, concerns over transparency and data ownership. Over 90% of staff flagged the use of cGenAI for essay-generation as problematic, compared to 58% of students, primarily due to concerns regarding academic integrity. These differences point to the need for institutional guidelines and dialogue to address ethical concerns and align expectations across stakeholder groups to ensure the effective integration of AI literacy in higher education.