The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
State bill aims to expand the use of AI in public schools
Some Connecticut teachers are starting to dabble in the world of artificial intelligence.
In Greenwich, that might look like plugging in a piece of text and telling the AI application to make it “match a student’s instructional reading level so that they could read higher level content with appropriate leveled text,” said Superintendent Toni Jones. Or perhaps using an AI tool to help come up with a lesson plan.
Greenwich Public Schools are “just beginning to scratch the surface of AI,” Jones said.
However, a proposed bill could encourage the practice and provide more districts across the state with access to an AI tool.
Bill No. 5, “An Act Concerning School Resources,” says the Connecticut State Department of Education will be required to select and use an AI tool that can be used by schools.
“We know AI is here to stay and AI has a lot of good potential to it, one of which is helping students ensure that they learn and they are able to succeed,” said Sen. Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, a co-sponsor of the bill.
An early version of the bill actually would have required the state Department of Education to develop their own AI tool, but CSDE Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker said in public testimony that wasn’t possible.
“Such tools are typically developed by software development corporations, higher education institutions or private research labs,” she said.
After pushback, the bill now states that the CSDE will select an AI tool educators and students can use. But Russell-Tucker pointed out that the bill does not say what type of AI tool the CSDE should select.
“There is not one AI tool that can meet all educational needs,” she said. “For example, some AI tools specialize in audio transcriptions for note-taking, some generate and edit text, some help teachers to streamline the grading tasks, while some others help simplify complex concepts for students.”
Jones said that is what is exciting about AI — it can “impact not only instruction, but operations of a school district.”
“In the past, Wikipedia, citation generators, Grammerly and Wolfram Alpha were revolutionary,” Jones said. “The new AI tools take us to a different level. … AI pulls from the global expertise on specific topics.”
Take, for example, job postings.
“With AI, a job description with basic parameters can be created in seconds,” Jones said. Human Resources Department “staff can then work to edit and refine that description to meet the needs of the organization. The process saves time and also staff resources to re-allocate to other tasks maximizing efficiency of the entire organization.”
AI could also help students with tasks, such as conducting research.
Bethel Superintendent Christine Carver said a student could type a question into an AI application about a topic they are researching and “it would tell us in two seconds.”
“It can almost be another tool to support — whether it’s research, drafting, finding out quick information about something,” Carver said. “The list goes on and on.”
The proposed bill also has some guardrails built in regarding AI.
It requires the CSDE, along with the Connecticut Commission for Education Technology, to create a professional learning program for educators and students to learn “how to properly and safely” use AI.
Students and staff need to now how to physically use the programs, but also “how to leverage it, under what circumstances it might be useful and it might be a tool useful for teachers and/or students,” Carver said.
There are also needs to be guidance on privacy, she added.
“I think one of the things that might be useful is like having something available that could be monitored,” Carver said, pointing out the potential for plagiarism and other “ethical implications.”
Another question surrounding the subject: Will districts be mandated to use the AI tool selected by the CDSE?
Kate Dias, president of the Connecticut Education Association teachers union, said she would not like to see that happen, especially since AI is constantly evolving.
“In three weeks, there will be a new (AI program). ... So, I think we have to be — particularly with technology — just so aware of how rapidly it changes and be prepared for that,” Dias said.
Some superintendents agree, including Jones.
“GPS would prefer that our educator community work in partnership with our (Board of Education) for future policy and regulation decisions, not the CSDE,” Jones said. “Every community is different in how technology tools and resources are utilized and distributed.”
When it comes to bringing AI into the classroom, Matthew Conway, superintendent of Derby Public Schools, said it may take some school districts longer than others to get used to it.
“While it can be exciting and innovative for some, it is also an unfamiliar technology tool for most and will take time for everyone to learn and feel confident and comfortable using it in the classroom,” Conway said.