Case Study - University of Lincoln Library

Case Study - University of Lincoln Library

Use of GenAISiS T.R.A.I.N. activity 'The Great Art Guess-off'

Contributor: Sarah Lewis, Learning and Teaching Librarian for the Creative Arts at the University of Lincoln.

Description of activity

A selection of images from the GenAISiS T.R.A.I.N. project that formed part of the game  'The Great Art Guess-off' was used to create two posters for display in the Library during Welcome Week. New and returning students were invited to add a coloured sticker (dot) to each image to say whether they thought the image was generated by AI (red dots) or created by an artist (blue dots) or by a child (yellow dots). 

Students were informed that the images by children could potentially be by a 17-year-old with amazing artistic talent, just to help give them a clue, but refrained from saying much more as it was understood early on that any observational comment made easily swayed the students to change their minds, which was not the intent. One student asked if the activity was "pro" or "anti" AI, which was a very interesting question. It was made clear that the activity was intended to be objective and an aid to increase critical thinking when engaging with images, both online and in the world. 

The images

There was a small but steady flow of students visiting the Library during Welcome Week, and the majority were willing to participate when approached. 

Student responses

The answers

What does this activity show us?

What did the students think?

From the interactions observed with the students, they found the activity both interesting and challenging. Everyone found it an interesting and challenging activity. Some were discussing how AI often have mis-shaped limbs or "too perfect" lines, one student commented that there is often a noticeable yellow tint to AI-generated images, and that they often look hyper-real. 

The activity sparked some brilliant conversations about how we judge what we see, the importance of context, and why critical thinking matters more than ever when engaging with images online and in the real world. 

The Team

The 'AI or Artist Game' results post on Instagram received 1,136 views, with 94.4% of those coming from followers of the University Library account (@uollibrary).