ChatGPT in the Classroom: A Shift in Engineering Design Education

Artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT are increasingly being incorporated into our education paradigm. This paper explores how ChatGPT was used in an Electrical Engineering Design Proficiency course at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. The course is a term-long laboratory-based class that centres on independent student work in system design, implementation, and validation. Students were encouraged to consult ChatGPT for design solutions, explanations, and suggestions, with the requirement that they declare any use of AI tools. The assessment process was carefully designed to determine whether responses originated from AI tools or the students' own understanding. Notably, 70% of the fifty students in the class utilised ChatGPT to enhance their understanding of the subject. The paper will also discuss the specific design tasks given to students, the assessment process, and explore ChatGPT's potential as a supportive educational tool in other courses.