District leaders share models for developing policies for how teachers and students can use generative AI safely, simply and honestly.

Superintendent Michael Nagler envisions a tipping point, not too far off, when generative AI forces educators to completely rethink the age-old method of teaching and learning -- and homework. It will hit when teachers can no longer "trust what students hand in."

But that may be a good thing that's a long time coming, says Nagler, who leads Mineola Public Schools in New York.

"We need to assess kids differently," he continues, "and actually speak to them about what they know and carve out more time during the day to have conversations with kids, see them do the work and ask them what they understand rather than trusting traditional assignments."

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Nagler, like many other superintendents and their teams, is providing teachers and students with policies and guidance -- and some leeway -- on bringing generative AI into the classroom. Another administrator, Andrew Fenstermaker, instructional technology coordinator at Iowa City Schools, advises leaders that whatever they come up with now will likely require adjustments and overhauls as generative AI advances.

"These guidelines are not meant to stand the test of time at this point," he says of his district's current AI policies. "They're meant to be an iterative guidance and right now this is our starting point. We want to continue to evolve and be responsive to students and teachers and community members."

Replicating teachers (not replacing them)

Nagler cautions other leaders that they don't necessarily have to craft a whole set of new AI policies. Many generative AI issues can be covered by existing rules and regulations, such as those covering cheating and academic integrity.

"The practical side is more problematic than the policy side, in that, 'What are you using it for?'" Nagler notes.

Externally, Nagler's biggest concern about generative AI is keeping student data secure. Despite New York state legal requirements, not all vendors guarantee such protections.

Nagler and his team rely on the district's online learning platform, KidOYO, to provide teachers with a secure "playground" where they can experiment with generative AI without putting student data at risk.

Teachers have been most interested in exploring how the technology can reduce assessment workloads. One AP teacher spent some time refining prompts until the AI learned her voice and her style in evaluating drafts of students' writing assignments.

"Teachers think it's going to replace them," Nagler adds. "But I like to use the expression 'it can replicate them.' It's all about prompt engineering and how you ask AI to do something."

Four artificial intelligence options

AI guidance developed by Iowa City Schools gives students and teachers four options for using the technology, should they choose to experiment with it: Clarifying, planning, assisting and revising.

Learner variability is addressed by all four alternatives noted above, says Fenstermaker, the instructional technology coordinator.

For instance, students can use AI to "clarify" academic concepts they don't fully understand. A third grader, for instance, could ask the tech for a simpler definition of "osmosis" while English learners could use AI to translate assignments.

Next, AI can help with the "planning" stages of assignments as students search for inspiration and ideas, and "assist" learners in organizing and structuring their work. Finally, students can seek feedback from AI for edits and revisions.

"Students need to make sure that they're integrating their own thoughts," Fenstermaker cautions. "What we're looking at is getting students to make sure that they're being transparent about their use of generative AI during an academic task."

The set of alternatives is the product of more than a school year's worth of work by a district task force that aligned age-appropriate uses of AI with district values and board policies. In some cases, of course, those rules had to be written afresh to ensure responsible use and flexibility,

"The guidelines that we've provided about responsible use provide some autonomy to teachers to dictate when, if and to what extent generative AI might be used in a classroom," Fenstermaker notes.

Underpinning student use of AI is that concept of academic transparency. Iowa City teachers will require students to submit transparency statements, detailing the ways they used the technology on an assignment.

This includes recording the prompts they used, the output they received from the AI and how that output informed their assignment.

Here's the statement:

I acknowledge the use of [insert AI system(s) and link] to [specific use of generative artificial intelligence]. The prompts used include [list of prompts]. The output from these prompts was used to [explain use].

"We want students to realize that the human has to be in the loop, and that they need to critically evaluate each output and not just blindly trust that output," Fenstermaker concludes.

'5 big ideas'

Kip Glazer, principal of Mountain View High School in California, has co-created a framework to guide other K12 leaders as they adopt AI. It is anchored by '5 big ideas':

The framework, developed through the Computer Science Teachers Association, incorporates the Biden Administration's proposed "AI Bill of Rights" along with guidance from the Department of Education, the European Union and UNESCO, the United Nation's education, science and culture agency. Leaders adopting AI must constantly evaluate the technology through all five lenses.

"Your policy has to be ongoing and continuous because of the new tools coming out all the time," explains Glazer, who was a tech coach before becoming an administrator. "You can't just say, 'This is the policy.' That's what's really challenging."

She also recommends taking a user-centered approach, which, in many cases, means simplicity for teachers and students.

"3 clicks -- something exciting, magical and useful has to happen to enhance the teacher's competence and feeling like, 'OK, this is useful for my students," she advises. "If you have to go 12 clicks, then that tool is useless. I don't care what it does."