@jalefkowit I would disagree here

We're really good at picking up on AI generated writing, and if a post sparks that debate, it is almost definitely AI.

Good writing doesn't beg this question.

@sethhonda @jalefkowit

How do you define 'good' writing, though?

Non-native and autistic writers (I'm both) get accused of using AI disproportionately more often than native speakers:

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/the-people-getting-falsely-accused-of-using-ai-to-write.html

I ran my university essays from the early 2000s through AI detectors, and each one was flagged as AI-generated with almost 100% certainty.

We've created a system where excellence is penalised and mediocre writing becomes the expectation.

The below is also worth reading:

https://www.techdirt.com/2026/03/06/were-training-students-to-write-worse-to-prove-theyre-not-robots-and-its-pushing-them-to-use-more-ai/

@RaffKarva @jalefkowit It's less the AI-detectors... those are bad.

People have a certain cadence of writing, even academically, that AI does not respect at all.

As a teacher, I see this all the time. Unless the student has rewritten the whole essay in their voice, individual sentences can stand out to me as AI generated.

Trust your gut, read more content from the author, and it's a bit easier to filter out the noise that way.

@sethhonda @jalefkowit

Based on your answer I am going to assme you didn't read the two links I shared.

@RaffKarva @jalefkowit I don't have a nymag sub, but I read the techdirt piece.

This responsibility falls on educators to not rely on this tool. While the "18%" may be scary, it's also going to be ignored in a lot of cases. It's the same when TurnItIn flags an essay as plagiarism when you're citing something from the source.

I'm not saying this isn't an issue, I'm saying that we've been trained our whole lives to detect this. The same thought you get when you see an AI generated image (less and less, I understand that) is the same feeling you get when you read an AI generated piece.

The difference, humans are linguistic creatures first. We are social creatures and we are trained to tell when someone sounds like they're lying or being coy or sarcastic. It may take a bit longer, and some practice, but we can tell when AI wrote something. An algorithm can't.

@sethhonda @RaffKarva @jalefkowit I will focus on the educator for a moment.

Students go from educator to educator. Good educators may ignore the 18%, but I suspect all students are familiar with the bad educators.

On top of that, we teach form over function in a lot of writing. Take a look at how much padding goes into academic writing - that is a sign of a systemic issue!

"How do you judge good writing" is a question with an unfortunatly twisted answer. We judge it by form, not effectiveness of capturing and communicating an idea.

And thus, AI becomes good writing.

@Epic_Null @RaffKarva

I just don't see any teachers giving out an F for an 18%. I also think that there is this focus put on the 'bad educator' when that is just not the case most of the time.

If a student made the case for their writing and could defend it, I see no issue with a teacher holding that scrutiny in the first place, it's a part of the job at this point.

My school doesn't have access to an AI-checker so if I suspect AI, I'll call the student over for a few minutes and ask them to defend various points in their essay, this isn't because I'm a 'good' educator, it's because I'm an educator.

I would also argue that more and more, teachers are being FORCED to judge the effectiveness of capturing and communicating an idea, because there are so many missing fundamentals in students who were homeschooled during critical academic years.

That being said, the form is not what makes AI standout. The form is also not what makes or breaks good writing. A perfectly formatted and punctuated essay about garbage is still about garbage.

The things that stand out? Stale organizational structure, overly complex word-choice consistently and correctly throughout, short and to-the-point sentences, overly variable word choice (this is a new one and it's different from what it was like 6-months ago when AI didn't have enough variability in word choice).

@sethhonda @RaffKarva

If a student made the case for their writing and could defend it

Listen I remember my highschool english teachers, and 2/3 of them (had one twice) were of a type where being right would not be enough to have a leg to stand on. 1/2 (the one I had twice) of them were of the kind I could not afford to be alone in a room with.

I'll call the student over for a few minutes and ask them to defend various points in their essay, this isn't because I'm a 'good' educator, it's because I'm an educator.

If you think that isn't "Because I'm a good educator", I have some news about your standards compared to several others. There are things that still stick in my brain from those years.

And the threat is not an F. When I tried to leave after trying to ask a clarifying question during passing period (her answet was not helpful), she wrote an email home saying I "stormed out of class". This was not the first, last, or only power play she made. Teachers have a LOT of power over students, and bad educators make sure the students know it.

The form is also not what makes or breaks good writing. A perfectly formatted and punctuated essay about garbage is still about garbage.

I would agree in general. But when it comes to rubrics and grades? How about leadership?

There is a reason a lot of writers struggle to recover their inner voice after highschool, and a reason why empty jargon fills corporate speeches.

Something is deeply broken, and with it, the idea of "good writing".