Our perspective
Critical thinking, research, and writing are deeply human activities, and the most meaningful work happens when people engage actively with ideas. Tools can support this process but work best when people remain actively involved in shaping, questioning, and interpreting the results. At McLaughlin Library, we support learning, research, and the creation of new knowledge. We take a learner-centred approach. Technology may change, but our focus remains on people and their growth as learners and researchers. We recognize that large language model-based generative AI (GenAI) tools have become part of how many people learn, read, write, research, and publish. Others have important questions about how these tools fit into academic work, and those questions are welcome here. We believe AI literacy has become an essential academic skill. Evaluating AI tools and their outputs is a natural extension of the information literacy work libraries have always done, and we embrace that role.
We also acknowledge that questions around AI are evolving quickly. U of G has affirmed its commitment to academic integrity in the context of AI through its Statement on Artificial Intelligence Systems, ChatGPT, and Academic Integrity, and members of the U of G community are actively exploring what responsible AI use looks like in research, teaching, and learning. The library is committed to supporting this broader conversation.
How the library can help
Across our service areas, we welcome conversations about generative AI. If you're using AI, or have questions about its use, let us know so that we can best support you. Wherever you are in your academic work, from finding sources to publishing your research, here's how we can help:
- Finding and evaluating information: GenAI can help you explore a topic, identify search terms, or work with data, but it is not a reliable substitute for library databases and vetted sources. AI-generated citations, facts, and analysis may be inaccurate or made up. We can help you develop the skills to evaluate AI outputs and search effectively.
- Studying and managing your time: GenAI can be a powerful learning tool, but it doesn't replace critical thinking or active engagement. We can help you use AI to create study tools, and with the habits and strategies AI can't build for you, from time management to exam preparation.
- Writing: GenAI can help with brainstorming and drafting but should be used with caution. We can help you think critically about the output, identify where your own voice and ideas need to come through more clearly, ensure your use aligns with your instructor's expectations, and discuss alternative approaches.
- Presenting and collaborating: GenAI can produce slides and scripts quickly, but a good presentation depends on knowing your audience and content, and that's something AI can't do for you. We can help you use AI tools effectively while building your own skills in poster design, presentation, and group work.
- Publishing and research integrity: GenAI can help with drafting, summarizing, and translating, but its use may be restricted or discouraged by some publishers, funders, and disciplines. We can help you navigate journal policies, understand what responsible disclosure looks like, and think through the implications for your work.
- Thinking critically about AI: GenAI tools are shaped by broader social and economic forces that are often invisible to their users. We can help you engage critically with those larger questions about how these tools and their use are a product of these larger forces.
- Teaching: The library sees AI literacy as a core academic literacy. AI literacy is an extension of the information literacy and academic skill support work the library has always done. We can partner with you to build AI literacy into your courses and support your students.
Using GenAI ethically and responsibly
GenAI tools can produce inaccurate information, false citations, and fabricated quotations, and their outputs may reflect hidden biases. Submitting AI-generated work as your own without permission violates U of G's Academic Misconduct policy. Inputting others' texts or unpublished work into an AI system also raises copyright and privacy concerns, and work you create with an AI may be ineligible for copyright protection. Used without care, AI can get in the way of developing your own skills and thinking. As a student or researcher, you are always fully responsible for the content of your work whether or not an AI tool was used. These tools also carry broader costs, including environmental impact, diminished learning and “cognitive debt,” and unresolved questions about copyright and labour, so weighing these costs is part of thoughtful use. We're committed to exploring what accountability looks like for the library's own use of GenAI, including questions of disclosure in our services, tools, and communications.
A note on University of Guelph Policies
Course instructors set the rules for AI use in their own classes. It is not the library's role to interpret those policies. If you are unsure what is permitted in a given course or context, check with your instructor. Similarly, researchers and employees should look to their own disciplinary norms and any applicable funder or publisher requirements.
We encourage you to stay up to date on GenAI policies and practices through official U of G channels.
We're here to talk about it
We encourage you to reach out if you have questions about AI in your research, writing, learning, or publishing. The library is a place where you can talk openly about how you are, or are not, using AI, including the parts you are unsure about, and those honest conversations help us support you better.
Where to learn more
We encourage you to stay up to date as guidance evolves; the resources below are good places to start.
- University of Guelph Statement on Artificial Intelligence Systems, ChatGPT, Academic Integrity
- Information Security Guidelines for the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence
- Library Guide: Introduction to Generative AI for Students
- Library Guide: Generative AI for Researchers
This statement reflects our thinking as of August 2026. GenAI is changing quickly and so is our understanding of it; we review this statement annually and welcome your input.
Adapted from the University of Delaware's Generative AI Policy Statement.