Four-category functional classification of student GenAI use (Learning, Formatting, Doing Task, Feedback)

Research Method · All research methods
Evidence · 1 claim (1 for) · 1 study (1 qualitative), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 1 claim rests on one study

Description

A descriptive coding framework developed inductively from students' mandatory GenAI-use declarations in the physics unit, classifying the "clearly stated pedagogical function of each reported GenAI use" into four themes: Learning (researching, understanding, conceptualising, refining understanding), Formatting (structure, organisation, admin tasks), Doing Task (calculations), and Feedback (clarification, feedback, verification, checking results). Each category was mapped to SAMR levels: Learning to Substitution→Augmentation, Formatting to Substitution, Doing Task to Modification→Redefinition, and Feedback across all levels. Frequencies per assessment provided the primary evidence for evaluating student GenAI use.

Accounts

• Four-category functional classification of student GenAI use (Learning, Formatting, Doing Task, Feedback) with SAMR mapping: A descriptive coding framework developed inductively from students' mandatory GenAI-use declarations in the physics unit, classifying the "clearly stated pedagogical function of each reported GenAI use" into four themes: Learning (researching, understanding, conceptualising, refining understanding), Formatting (structure, organisation, admin tasks), Doing Task (calculations), and Feedback (clarification, feedback, verification, checking results). Each category was mapped to SAMR levels: Learning to Substitution→Augmentation, Formatting to Substitution, Doing Task to Modification→Redefinition, and Feedback across all levels. Frequencies per assessment provided the primary evidence for evaluating student GenAI use. (Zachery Quince et al. (2026))

Claims

• Student GenAI use patterns shifted across assessments: Learning and Formatting dominated under purpose-specific use, while Feedback became the dominant use (66.7%) under open use [+M]

Related Research Methods

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Key Sources

• Zachery Quince and Emily Faulconer. (2026). Student GenAI use under changing institutional policies: a mixed-methods case study in undergraduate physics. International Journal of STEM Education. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-026-00651-w

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	research-method
id	four-category-functional-classification-of-student-genai-use-learning-formatting-doing-tas
title	Four-category functional classification of student GenAI use (Learning, Formatting, Doing Task, Feedback)
description	A descriptive coding framework developed inductively from students' mandatory GenAI-use declarations in the physics unit, classifying the "clearly stated pedagogical function of each reported GenAI use" into four themes: Learning (researching, understanding, conceptualising, refining understanding),
status	review
generated	by process:settle-candidates on 2026-10-11
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content

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