Surveillance Work in (and) Teaching Technical Writing with AI

• Published in: Journal of technical writing and communication Vol. 54; no. 4; pp. 419 - 438
• Main Authors: Pflugfelder, Ehren Helmut, Reeves, Joshua
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-10-2024; Sage Publications Ltd
• Subjects: Ethics; Generative artificial intelligence; Pedagogy; Plagiarism; Student writing; Surveillance; Technical communication; pedagogy; surveillance; plagiarism; artificial intelligence
• ISSN: 0047-2816; 1541-3780
• DOI: 10.1177/00472816241260028

The use of generative artificial intelligence (GAI) large language models has increased in both professional and classroom technical writing settings. One common response to student use of GAI is to increase surveillance, incorporating plagiarism detection services or banning certain composing activities from the classroom. This paper argues such measures are harmful and instead proposes a “CARE” framework: critical, authorial, rhetorical, and educational—a nuanced approach emphasizing ethical and contextual AI use in technical writing classrooms. This framework aligns with plagiarism best practices, initially devised from when rhetoric and composition scholars considered the pedagogical implications of the Internet.