Using AI responsibly¶
online:academy has AI features — the AI learning assistant (tutor), the AI-assisted grading of free-text answers, and the AI quality check of courses. This page is your mandatory introduction as a trainer or Customer-Admin (EU AI Act training, Issue #221). It explains what the AI can do, where its limits are, and what responsibility stays with you.
Why this matters¶
Grading in education counts as a high-risk use under the EU AI Act. That does not mean AI grading is forbidden — but the final decision has to lie with a human, and learners have to know that an AI was involved. That is exactly what the features below are for.
How our AI works¶
- Self-hosted, in Germany. The language model runs on our own server in the Hetzner data center. No answers from your learners go to OpenAI, Google, or other external services.
- No training with your data. The model does not learn from the answers — it only grades them.
- Logged. Every AI call is logged in an audit-proof way (without storing the plain text, only a cryptographic fingerprint).
The three features and their limits¶
1. AI grading of free-text answers¶
The AI proposes a score and feedback. That is a proposal, not a grade.
- ⚠️ The AI can be wrong — with answers that are factually correct but unusually phrased, with irony, with non-native speakers, or with very terse answers.
- ✅ Your job: Review the AI gradings under "AI gradings" in the menu. You can filter by score range (e.g. all borderline cases at 60-70 %) and approve or override each grading (change the score + feedback).
- 🔒 For certificate-relevant courses you can enable "AI gradings require trainer approval" in the course. Then no AI grading counts towards completion before you have approved it.
Rule: Don't wave gradings through unchecked. The most common mistake is to trust the AI blindly — that is exactly what the approval step is meant to prevent.
2. AI learning assistant (tutor)¶
A chat assistant that helps learners with questions of understanding.
- It is labelled as AI; learners see a notice the first time they open it.
- It does not grade and makes no decisions.
- Answers can be inaccurate or made up ("hallucination"). Point out to your learners that they should double-check important statements.
- Conversations are private — you as a trainer do not see them.
3. AI quality check of courses¶
Evaluates only the structure and metadata of your course (title, description, lesson setup) — not the media quality of videos or embedded content. Use it as a source of hints, not as a verdict.
What you owe your learners¶
- Transparency: The labelling happens automatically — don't undermine it (e.g. by passing off AI feedback as your own).
- Right to human review: If learners object to an AI grading, look at it and correct it where necessary. That is their right.
- Data minimisation: Ask learners not to give sensitive personal data in free-text answers.
When something goes wrong¶
- Systematically poor/biased AI gradings (e.g. always worse for certain groups) → report to the platform administration.
- Inappropriate or wrong tutor answers → report those too; we will check the model.
In a nutshell¶
| The AI proposes | The human decides |
|---|---|
| Score + feedback | You approve or override |
| Answer in the tutor chat | Learners check important statements |
| Quality score | You judge the course |
The AI takes work off your hands — the responsibility stays with you.