Philly teachers have a new question to consider when grading papers: Did a student write this, or was it AI?

What's happening: ChatGPT, the new artificial intelligence tool that can write remarkably cogent essays on any topic based on simple prompts, has educators scrambling to sniff out plagiarists, writes Axios' Jennifer Kingson.

• It has also sparked debates about the nature and purpose of modern teaching methods.

Why it matters: Some teachers foresee "a flood of cheating," while others envision a big opportunity to improve — and modernize — how writing is taught.

Driving the news: Several school districts have blocked the chatbot from their systems, including New York City, but critics say such bans are shortsighted and ineffective.

• "Kids will always find ways to take shortcuts around hard work," says Philip Vinogradov, director of innovation at Merion Mercy Academy, a private high school near Philadelphia.
• From calculators and CliffsNotes to Google Translate, Grammarly and Photomath, teachers have always had to stay one step ahead of students, he notes.

Zoom in: The School District of Philadelphia doesn't currently block ChatGPT from student-issued Chromebooks, but officials aren't ruling it out in the future, district spokesperson Christina Clark told Axios.

• The district hasn't received any complaints from principals or teachers about students using ChatGPT, Clark said.

Temple University is reviewing potential policies around student-use of tools like ChatGPT.

• "We are concerned about the potential misuse of these tools, but we also are excited about the opportunity to work with students using AI for learning," Temple spokesperson Deirdre Childress Hopkins told Axios.

Reality check: The writing produced by ChatGPT is formulaic, and the content is often inaccurate.

• It doesn't include citations or sources, and it's programmed to exclude anything that happened after 2021.

Go deeper

Philly's real estate market isn't poised for a crash this year. Here's what Brett Rosenthal of Compass' Revolve Philly Group says to expect instead.

1. It'll be slow to start.

• Rosenthal predicts 2023 will be slower than the last few years, but activity will pick up later in the year.

2. Demand will pick up from regular folks — and investors.

• "Higher interest rates took some buyers out of the market, however I am already seeing many come back," he says.
• Investors will be active in Philly in 2023, too. Philly, Rosenthal says, has a lower cost of entry than other markets, which makes it ripe for investors.

3. Prices will hardly change.

• Because supply is still so low, prices will only come down slightly. "I expect that to continue until the spring," Rosenthal says.

Pennsylvania will get a new governor today.

What's happening: Democrat Josh Shapiro will be sworn as the state's 48th governor at the state Capitol in Harrisburg.

• Shapiro will serve a four-year term alongside lieutenant governor Austin Davis, the latter of whom will become the first African American to serve in the post.

Why it matters: Shapiro takes over from fellow Democrat Tom Wolf, marking the first consecutive Democratic governors since the 1960s.

• After years of partisanship in Harrisburg, Shapiro has said he will form a bipartisan coalition to govern.

The big picture: Pennsylvania will nevertheless have a divided government over the next two years.

• While Democrats control the state House, Republicans maintain a firm grip on the Senate.

Zoom in: The makeup of Shapiro's future top cabinet has been taking shape in recent weeks.

• He has pledged to nominate Republican Al Schmidt, a former elections official in Philly, as secretary of state, and Philadelphia native Khalid Mumin as education secretary, among others.

1 cool thing: Today's ceremony will have a Philly connection.

• Shapiro, who is Jewish, will take the oath of office by placing his hand on three Bibles, one of which Philly's Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History will supply.
• That Bible, printed for World War II Jewish servicemembers, was carried by a soldier who had links to Shapiro's current synagogue, Beth Sholom in Elkins Park.

⚖️ Philly rapper Meek Mill received a pardon for his 2008 drug and weapons convictions from Gov. Tom Wolf last week. Mill's charges were part of a decade-long legal battle that pushed him to seek criminal justice reform. (6ABC)

🗳️ A Pennsylvania court ruled last week that a pair of Pittsburgh-area special elections for the state House should be held on Feb. 7. Those two elections, along with a third set for the same day, will determine whether Democrats or Republicans hold a majority in the chamber. (Spotlight PA)

🧑‍💻 Wawa will open a tech hub at one of its shuttered Center City locations. The venue will likely serve as a place to train young workers to help meet growing industry demand in the region, Wawa's CEO said. (Philadelphia Business Journal)

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When artist Lisa Kelley needs to clear her mind, she walks to a park and listens to the chirps of bluebirds, wrens and chickadees flying overhead.

Driving the news: The three birds are the inspiration behind Kelley's first-ever mural inside SEPTA's Suburban Station. The piece, "my art gives me a voice," is being dedicated today by Mural Arts.

• Kelley said birds, with messages of hope dangling from their beaks, help uplift her spirit, and she hopes they do the same for people walking by the sprawling, 120-foot mural.

The inspiration