Washington this week became the fifth state to issue a roadmap to guide educators, students and families in using artificial intelligence in public schools.
Rather than banning the use of AI and increasingly popular chatbots, the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) is urging thoughtful, human-centered use of the tools.
“As this technology revolutionizes industries, communities, sciences, and workplaces, our responsibility is to prepare students and educators to use these tools in ways that are responsible, ethical, and safe,” said Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal in an intro to the new guide.
The document provides explanations of AI, generative AI and large language models. It offers cautions about the limitations of the technology. And it encourages an “Human → AI → Human” approach, which means beginning with human inquiry, applying AI tools, and then evaluating and editing the results.
School districts around the state have struggled to respond to the quickly evolving and increasingly accessible technology with some districts and educators seeking to ban its use while others experimented with its applications.
The new guidance should offer some direction and could help assuage fears that AI is just a means for plagiarism and cheating — and early research suggests those worries aren’t coming to fruition.
The document includes suggested uses of the technology, including:
- creating lesson plans and tests
- translating learning materials into multiple languages
- developing personalized teaching materials
- aiding in student creativity
- helping students develop critical thinking
- and automating some administrative activities
The framework includes advice on managing student privacy, ensuring equitable access to AI tools, direction on creating local AI policies, and the importance of professional development for educators in this area.
The overarching message is that AI and the tools it powers can’t be shut out of education, so educators are better off learning to work with it.
“AI is here,” Reykdal wrote, “and slowing down isn’t an option.”
