Sir, – Further to “AI essay writing tool causes alarm on college campuses” (Education, January 19th), it is well within living memory that Latin was a compulsory subject to study medicine at many universities. That need became hard to justify and in hindsight seems ridiculous. I wonder if the need to write good essays, as regrettable as it may feel, is becoming equally archaic? If, as is widely reported, artificial intelligence can now generate acceptable articles and prose, then it will be as difficult to use it as a way to assess students’ performance as it will be to justify requiring them to learn that skill.
A more appropriate assessment for the 21st century might be of ability to speak on, and communicate about, the concepts studied. While concerns might arise about anonymity, favouritism and verification, it would nonetheless be a more meaningful ability to demonstrate for the purposes of modern life. It’s interesting that, while Latin is long gone from medical curriculums, both undergraduate and postgraduate exams, here and abroad, incorporate oral exams, or vivas, along with real-time demands to elicit and interpret information and data. Over generations, if anything the emphasis on these components of examinations is growing. And if you ask yourself how you decide who is a good physician, lawyer, teacher, or potential colleague, it is almost certainly not based around their ability to write essays. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN O’BRIEN,
Kinsale,
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