When does using AI in a group project cross the line from collaboration to just copying?
I think it comes down to: Who’s making the decisions? If students are evaluating AI suggestions, building on them with their own ideas, and maintaining ownership of the final work, that’s collaboration. If they’re just accepting whatever AI produces without thinking critically about it, that’s copying. The tool isn’t the problem. It’s all about how the students use it.
I’ve seen both versions. I’ve whitnessed students paste an AI response into a group document and call it collaboration. That’s autopilot mode, and it’s killing the very skills they need to develop.
But I’ve also seen the better version, where students use AI as a genuine collaborative partner. They brainstorm with it, evaluate its suggestions critically, and build on its ideas with their own insights.
“Copilot not autopilot” is a phrase I’ve heard in education circles that perfectly captures this distinction. Students should be the pilots, making all the key decisions about where they’re going and how to get there. AI provides suggestions and assistance, but humans stay in control.
This is what I’m working toward. Imagine a group working on a research presentation about climate change impacts. One student uses AI to brainstorm ways to organize their findings. Another works with AI to analyze data trends. A third collaborates with AI to develop visual presentation ideas. The students spend as much time discussing, modifying, and improving AI suggestions as they do generating them. The AI gives them more ideas to work with, but the thinking is distinctly human.
So what does effective collaboration with AI actually look like? In my experience, students who do it well:
- Set the goals and make the key decisions themselves
- Use AI for brainstorming and initial research, but evaluate everything critically
- Build meaningfully on AI suggestions with their own insights
- Maintain ownership of the creative vision and final outcomes
- Understand that AI is a tool to enhance their work, not do it for them
Here’s what I’m experimenting with: having students document their process when they use AI for group work. What did they ask AI? What suggestions did they keep, modify, or reject? What decisions did they make and why? This reflection helps them (and me) see whether they’re really leading the collaboration or just following AI’s lead.
The goal is students who can work with both human teammates and AI assistance while maintaining their own leadership and creative ownership.
What are you seeing with student collaboration in your classroom? Are your students leading, or is AI?
