Student Blog: Academic Integrity

As theater students, we are made to keep creativity alive. We thrive on having a lot of things to do. We have homework which consists of hands-on projects, reading scripts, and papers. We have rehearsals which take hours out of our days to rehearse our art forms. And we have to take time for ourselves to hang out with friends and relax our minds. When a teacher springs a paper or exam on us this can throw us into a bit of a tizzy. Theater students plan out when they are going to complete their assignments weeks in advance so this disturbs our pre-planned schedule. Something like this can make you want to text up your friends and ask for the answers, or use ChatGPT (open AI) to assist us in our assignment. 

Theater professors are some of the smartest people you will ever meet. A lot of the people who are educating us have been in the professional world, and have been studying their concentration for years and years on end. They give us the best of the best to read and learn from, and by doing so it keeps us challenged and on our toes. A lot of the content we read is linked, which means if you use AI or someone else's work to complete your assignment, it can lead to confusion. A lot of the subjects of our assignments come back to us in exams and final assignments, so by completing the work you won’t be stumped in the future.

We are creators. Though we are submitting them for grades, the papers we write and projects we complete are pieces of art. When we go see plays and musicals we hope that they are fresh, one-of-a-kind and inspiring. When an artist creates it is meant to be their own authentic voice fueling their art form. Your most successful work is when you are your own self. 

We are always told to be ourselves. By using someone else's work or using an AI generator you can essentially work against this and pretend to be someone else's voice, no matter how much you try to keep your own voice present. If lack of time is the issue, ask your professor for an extension. They will tend to be understanding because they would prefer you to understand the content and participate in class, rather than rush through an assignment using dishonest means of research. No matter what is the cause of your brain block, always stay true to yourself. Keep your voice authentic. In the end, maintaining academic integrity will help you feel better about yourself and the work produced.