Full Breakdown
UC Berkeley Professor Shifts Grading Policy Amid AI-Driven Homework Surge
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
Mathematics professor Richard Borcherds, a 1998 Fields Medalist at the University of California, Berkeley, has stopped grading students’ homework for correctness. Citing the rapid rise of artificial-intelligence tools that enable top marks, he now awards credit primarily for completing assignments, while relying on in-person exams—where electronic devices are prohibited—to assess mastery.
Background & Context
The professor’s decision follows a broader campus-wide push to address AI use. UC Berkeley’s assistant vice provost for undergraduate education, Anne Marie Richard, has issued guidance urging faculty to include explicit AI policies in syllabi. The university has tested detection software such as Turnitin and Rumi but found them insufficiently reliable for campus-wide adoption, leaving individual instructors to set their own rules.
Official Statements & Responses
He observes a noticeable rise in average scores on online exams, which he now deems “a waste of time” because of AI cheating. To preserve assessment integrity, he emphasizes in-person exams as the primary grading tool. Richard, representing the Academic Senate, stresses that faculty must outline expectations regarding AI tools, though the university has not mandated a uniform detection system.
Impact & Implications
Borcherds’ policy highlights a growing challenge for higher-education institutions: maintaining academic standards as AI tools become increasingly capable. The shift also underscores a potential widening gap between coursework that can be automated and assessments that require real-time, device-free performance.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Student use of AI for homework is now widespread,” — Richard Borcherds
- “If AI continues to improve at present rate, then, in a few years, there’ll be nothing human mathematicians can do that AI can’t do better,” — Richard Borcherds
- “There have been plenty of technical breakthroughs in the past — hand weaving was put out of business by looms, and horses were put out of business by motor cars, and so on,” — Richard Borcherds