Microsoft Copilot

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Microsoft Copilot

MS Copilot supports these learning types (see definitions):

Acquisition

Inquiry

Production

MS Copilot is now integrated into the Microsoft 365 suite (previously MS Office). It utilises generative AI technology to interpret and respond to questions in a natural, conversational manner. In teaching, it can be used by both teachers and students to:

Grasp complex concepts, providing explanations and guiding students through the steps of problem solving
Summarise topics and find relevant information on a subject
Provide code examples, explain conditional logic or help debug algorithms
Develop creative writing or essay skills, generate ideas for stories, provide leads of inquiry, or feedback on written work

While Copilot is a powerful tool, it is important to remember that it is not exempt from bias, distortion or fabrication (termed ‘hallucinations’) and should be used to supplement rather than replace traditional learning. Students should:

Be given clear guidance on when and how it may be used for coursework and assessment tasks
Always verify the information provided by the tool
Consult with their teacher when in doubt

Use Copilot, freestyle

Start a conversation on any topic by accessing Copilot in your browser.

Go to: https://copilot.microsoft.com/ and log in with your UoA account (username@uoa.auckland.ac.nz).
Look for the privacy symbol. If you don’t see this symbol on the page, your login was unsuccessful. Scroll down and read the FAQ on this page about how to log in to Copilot.

The privacy symbol indicates that data protection is applied to this chat.

Use Copilot to ask questions about a webpage

Within MS Edge browser, look for the Copilot symbol at the top of the sidebar. Click the icon to open the Copilot AI companion. This is where you can ask the tool to generate a summary of the page you are currently viewing, or ask it questions about the content.

The Copilot sidebar in Microsoft Edge browser allows you to ask the tool to summarise the page in view, or ask it questions about the page content.

If you don’t use MS Edge, go to Copilot from your regular browser and type the following text prompt into the freestyle chat: “summarise a webpage.” It will ask you to provide the page URL. You can then ask it more specific questions about the page’s content.

How-to guides

From the University of Auckland

Familiarise yourself with the University’s Gen-AI Usage Standard before uploading any content.
Find out what is meant by internal, sensitive, and restricted data via the University’s Data Classification Standard (restricted data must not be used with this tool).
Ensure you are logged in via your UoA Microsoft account (username@uoa.auckland.ac.nz).
Label/cite AI-generated content and apply critical judgement to outputs.

The University’s advice for students

Watch recordings from a seminar held by our in-house digital learning specialist expert, Karl McGuirk, who unveils the intricacies of working with Copilot:

View the recordings in Panopto

From Microsoft

Getting started with Copilot (video series)

Copilot FAQs

Copilot Lab for tips on generating effective prompts

FAQs

What are the deficiencies of generative AI in education?

The limitations of tools like Copilot are not trivial and should be taken into consideration and explained to students at every opportunity.

Outdated information—its knowledge base is only current up to a point in time.
Lacking personalisation—no ability to adapt responses to an individual or a learning type.
No emotional intelligence—an inability to understand emotional cues results in no provision for learning support or motivation.
Inaccuracy and bias—it is not infallible and prone to information bias. It can even generate fake references in an attempt to sound plausible. Therefore it is imperative for users to cross-verify against reliable sources.
Lack of context—it doesn’t remember past interactions when starting a new conversation, leading to an inability to provide relevant responses longitudinally.

Is my data protected while using Copilot?

Yes, when signed in to Copilot with your University of Auckland account it is safe to use internal and sensitive data (see the University’s Data Classification Standard); your interactions will remain private. Your information will not be used to train its large language model for future interactions by other users.

See the FAQ below about how to log in to Copilot.

* Restricted data must not be used with Copilot. Such data must remain held at the University. AI chat services are cloud hosted so the data would not remain held at the University.

How do I log in to Copilot?

Go to: https://copilot.microsoft.com/ and click Sign in.

Enter your UoA account (username@uoa.auckland.ac.nz). Click Next.

You will be directed to the University’s Single Sign-On page where you can enter your UoA credentials.
The next screen may prompt you to select an account (work or personal), choose your Work account. This account is protected by enterprise data protection.

Upon login, look for the privacy symbol. The privacy symbol indicates that data protection is applied to this chat.

What if I suspect a student of unauthorised use of used generative AI tools for coursework?

Please review the advice given on the Staff Intranet on the non-permissible use of Gen-AI in assessments.

Support

For support with assessment redesign or incorporating generative AI into your courses, book a session with Ranga Auaha Ako, Learning and Teaching Design Team through the TeachWell Consult service.

If you have general questions about University policy and/or procedures around using generative AI, you can email the Academic Quality Office.

For technical support and feedback on the use of MS Copilot, contact Staff Service Centre.