Schools are navigating the new world of artificial intelligence

The Sarasota School District preps for school board discussion on a new digital standard.

The Suncoast News | By Jim DeLa | February 20, 2024

Artificial intelligence has quickly become commonplace, from virtual assistants such as Siri and Alexa, to automated trip planning and calendar reminders.

Experts say educators and their students are also becoming more dependent on AI tools, such as spelling- and grammar-checking programs, to full-on essay generators.

The rapid proliferation of AI — along with concerns over misuse and data breaches — are prompting local schools to consider and set policies on its use.

A report prepared in 2023 by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology acknowledges “the clear need” to develop classroom policies for using AI.

“Useful, powerful functionality can also be accompanied with new data privacy and security risks,” the report says. “Educators recognize that AI can automatically produce output that is inappropriate or wrong. They are wary that the associations or automations created by AI may amplify unwanted biases. They have noted new ways in which students may represent others’ work as their own.”

The Sarasota County School Board is scheduled to consider two new policies at its Feb. 20 meeting, said district spokeswoman Kelsey Whealy.

One involves proposed changes to the policy on academic honesty. Whealy says the changes would add that students cannot use AI as a replacement for their own work. “And, if AI is used within a student’s work, the student must cite AI like they would other sources,” she said.

Programs such as Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or dual enrollment may have additional restrictions on AI use in their respective courses.

Another proposal is a new internet safety policy which includes a provision that if students and employees used AI software on personal devices, the school district can’t guarantee that their data will be protected.

Whealy also said the district is also working on a broader policy that would provide additional guidelines on the use of AI.

She said the policy will likely include prohibitions and conditions on when employees and students can use AI and what information cannot be input into an AI platform, as well as a section detailing responsible use.

Whealy added the county’s newest high school, to open in Wellen Park for the 2025-2026 school year, will offer an AI track in its Career and Technical Education program. Details on the curriculum are still being formulated, she said.

In Manatee County, school district spokesman Mike Barber says administrators say AI has “not been an issue for our district up to this point. I am sure it will be something we will need to address in the near future.”

Ahead of the curve

At St. Stephen’s Episcopal School in Bradenton, administrators are embracing the possibilities of AI and are already learning to navigate the technology along with their students.

“It’s been really interesting over the last year and a half,” said Andrew Forrester, associate head of school at St. Stephen’s. “As educators, we are really excited to see what the opportunities are for artificial intelligence in the classrooms.”

He said most students are using artificial intelligence as more of a prompt. “And what we’re working on with them now is, once you’ve sort of primed your writing or your research, or your understanding with something that’s been generated, what are those next steps?”

Forrester says AI by itself can be a learning tool. As an example, he noted a popular website that allows uploads of photos of math problems that are then solved by AI software.

“And, of course, children thought they were so slick because they were having their math problems solved,” he said.

But the site also provides step-by-step directions on how to solve those problems manually. “And it was helping them because maybe they weren’t solving it themselves at first, but they were learning how to do it,” Forrester said.

Issues such as how to cite AI-generated content in research, and to know how much AI is too much, is a work in progress.

“It’s been a process,” Forrester said. St. Stephen’s has also implemented more in-class writing assignments. “When it comes to those assessments or where we really want to make sure that they don’t have any distractions, they’ll do that work in the classroom.”

However, Forrester says if a student potentially crosses a line, the focus is on understanding what happened and to correct it.

“If they cited something incorrectly or if they have potentially plagiarized something … the teacher sets up a time where we talk through what happened,” Forrester said.

A student council may also get involved, to decide if the student broke the school’s honor code.

“They determine kind of what happened, whether it was an intentional piece, whether it was unintentional, if they were short-cutting something or if they were really just trying to get their work done and they weren’t exactly sure how to do this,” Forrester explained.

“Our students tend to want to learn, so they’re not trying to get away with it, they’re trying to use it as a tool.”

A tool for teachers, too

Teachers are also experimenting with AI, Forrester said, noting one Latin teacher was using ChatBot to see how well it checked students’ translations.

A music teacher recently asked an AI bot to write a song. “There’s all different ways that you can use it and we’re just seeing what it does,” he said.

Educators are not to the point of having AI create lesson plans or evaluating students’ work. “We’re not using it for that,” he said. “We’re not at a point where we know enough to be able to work out where it’s going to be useful. So, teachers are using this; they’re looking at it.”

Ultimately, he said, schools must learn to deal with technological advances.

“We have had some people who are very worried that this is going to be the end of the world as we know it, but that’s happened many times before in history,” he said. “So we’re not too concerned that … somehow their education will be ruined because of AI.”

Despite the potential dangers, Forrester says educators must move forward. “We do want to make sure that we’re thinking about what they’re using that (AI) for and how it’s going to help them be more prepared for college, more prepared for life, and not something that you just shy away from.”