Students’ Use of ChatGPT as a Source of Information in the Experiment on Oxidation of Aldehydes and Ketones with Tollens and Fehling Reagents

While performing inquiry-based organic chemistry laboratory activities, students can benefit from other sources of information besides their prior knowledge, interaction with peers, and guidance from the instructor. In this study, we investigated how university students used ChatGPT as an information source to revise their answers on the activity sheet in the experiment on oxidation of aldehydes and ketones with Tollens and Fehling reagents. For this purpose, the questions the students posed to the AI, the responses they received, and the changes they made in their activity sheets were analyzed. Students frequently asked questions to ChatGPT throughout the activity, and the AI produced mostly correct responses. Students used the responses they received from the AI to generate, improve, or verify their answers in their activity sheets. AI was particularly useful for the students in preparing the oxidizing reagents, designing the experiment, and collecting the data. According to the interview data, students found ChatGPT useful in terms of providing alternative explanations, eliminating conceptual gaps, and providing quick access to information. However, students accepted the responses of ChatGPT without critically evaluating them, which led to the acceptance of incomplete or incorrect information as correct. Moreover, ChatGPT’s long and complex answers, especially in the explanation of results stage, made it difficult for students to distinguish important information. Such situations reveal the limitations of using AI and emphasize the importance of developing students’ questioning and verification skills.