Across Iowa, artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping the education landscape as students, parents, teachers and school leaders adapt to its impact and learn how best to harness it to advance learning.
In early 2023, signs of AI in education were already popping up around the Winterset Community School District. Superintendent Justin Gross saw opportunities on the horizon after attending a conference with several AI sessions. Chad Sussex, assistant principal for grades 7-12, watched a webinar by Matt Miller, educator and author of AI for Educators, on the six AI conversations schools need to have and shared those insights with other leaders in the district. Meanwhile, in the classroom, students concurrently enrolled in Des Moines Area Community College courses started to utilize AI tools in their coursework.
The convergence of these factors led the Winterset team to create the district's AI Task Force. The AI Task Force's initial goal was to develop an AI policy for the district and outline a process for vetting AI tools for use in the district while protecting student privacy.
With nearly 20 members, Winterset’s AI task force is composed of teachers and administrators from across the school district. The task force developed Winterset's first AI policies in the spring of 2024 and regularly updates its policies as new technologies emerge to address AI-generated images and videos, as well as companion sites.
The district piloted an AI platform called MagicSchool to help establish AI literacy with teachers and develop effective ways to use AI in the classroom. The platform aims to help teachers save time and reduce burnout by automating administrative tasks and providing tools for lesson planning, creating assessments and communicating with families.
The district also collaborated with the EDSAFE AI Alliance to construct an AI literacy framework for teachers and students. EDSAFE provides essential guidance, focusing collective efforts on shared goals and establishing the guardrails necessary for safe and effective adoption of AI in education.
"AI is not going away, so what are we going to do to leverage it and prepare our students for a world that has AI in it?" Sussex said. "If we don't do it here, who is going to do it and how are students going to be successful in that world? That was the underlying question when we set out on this journey."
Sussex saw an immediate application for AI tools to help enhance educator efficiency, citing a recent Walton Family Foundation/Gallup study that estimates AI use can save teachers six hours a week. That time savings often comes from using AI to fine-tune lesson plans, handle administrative tasks and modify materials to meet student needs.
While AI has the potential to reshape the classroom, Sussex doesn't see it creating a seismic shift because of the need for human-to-human interaction in education. Instead, he sees it as a tool to leverage more personalized learning.
AI-powered software can adapt lessons based on student responses, offering additional practice for those who need extra help or advanced tasks for students who are ready to move ahead. AI tools can analyze a student's reading level and suggest texts and vocabulary tailored to their progress. Math programs can diagnose areas where a student may be struggling and recommend targeted skill-building activities. These platforms allow teachers to spend more one-on-one time supporting students rather than manually analyzing data or creating multiple versions of assignments.
"Teachers are the experts, but that doesn't mean AI can't supplement and complement what we already know is best for students," Sussex said. "In that regard, I think it can be a game changer."
To keep staff, parents and the community informed on the use of AI in the district, Gross publishes monthly updates detailing the tools being used, updates to the district's AI policy, the vetting process for adopting AI tools and how parents can address and monitor their students' AI usage outside of school.
“Schools may already have policies in effect that address the different impact areas of artificial intelligence, but districts need to make sure they are moving beyond a piecemeal approach to systemically addressing how AI will impact how we learn and work in the near and distant future,” said Iowa Department Education Program Consultant Michelle Meier.
For districts looking to follow this guidance and assemble an AI task force, Sussex recommends drawing on all stakeholders involved and strongly encourages seeking and embracing the input of AI skeptics to facilitate discussion that ultimately forges a more robust, well-thought-out AI policy.
"We're all in this together and we want to help each other out," Sussex said. "I'd hate to see a district ban it and their students graduate and they know nothing about the right way to use AI ethically, responsibly and succeed in a world with AI."
Tips for Starting Your AI Task Force
Convening a robust AI task force is a key first step for developing a well-designed school or district-wide AI policy. An AI task force should be a diverse group representing all who may be impacted, including students, parents, teachers, administrators and community members. Below are some important tips for getting started with your AI task force.
1. Get the right people on the bus
- Select district members from multiple buildings and departments to ensure that consideration is given to how AI might be utilized across all grade levels and content areas.
- The task force should include AI advocates as well as skeptics.
2. Audit current AI use and knowledge
- Review and understand your school and district’s starting point of AI use and knowledge. This will help you plot out your next steps!
3. Review AI-related policies of other districts
- Collaborate with other districts to see how they are addressing AI use with their students.
4. Develop AI-related policies and a roadmap or plan for implementation
- Consider including areas on acceptable use, access to AI tools, protocols for vetting tools, data privacy, student learning and staff professional development.
5. Implement and evaluate
- Consider whether to pilot implementation of AI policies with specific teachers or grade levels or implement building or district-wide.
6. Communicate
- Develop a communication plan to keep students, teachers and parents informed of policy, expectations and consequences.
- Create communication messaging and materials for parents with family-friendly explanations of AI and its role in learning.