Ask AI to Tell on Itself

One practical way to rethink assignments in the age of generative AI is to ask AI to tell on itself. Run your assignment directions through a chatbot (like Google Gemini) and prompt it to complete the task. Then ask the AI to explain why it was able to do so AND where it struggled. Let it tell you how to make an assignment harder for AI to complete successfully!

This quick AI exercise helps surface which parts of an assignment rely on skills AI handles well (summarizing, paraphrasing, surface-level analysis) and which depend on human judgment, context, creativity, or lived experience.

Try a quick “AI audit” of an assignment

1. Paste your assignment instructions into an AI tool
   Prompt it as a student: “Complete this assignment as written.” Review the response with a critical eye.
   
2. Ask AI to tell on itself
   Follow up with prompts such as:
   
   • “Which parts of this assignment were easiest for you and why?”
     
   • “Which parts were hardest or least appropriate for AI to complete?”
     
   • “What assignment features made this task easier for AI?”
     
3. Revise with intention—two possible paths
   
   • To limit AI use: Ask for revisions that emphasize process, reflection, personal or local context, decision-making, or drafts with feedback. You can also just ask it to “redesign this assignment in three ways that would be harder for a generative AI chatbot to successfully complete.”
     
   • To support productive AI use: Ask how students could use AI transparently, while still demonstrating original thinking and critical judgment. Using AI this way turns it into a partner rather than something to police. 

Whether your goal is to make assignments more resistant to AI chatbots or to intentionally build AI literacy, asking AI to “tell on itself” can clarify what you really want students to learn and help you update your assignments in the age of AI.