AI Goes To School

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In past years, schools have raced to adopt smartboards, laptops and learning apps. Now, artificial intelligence is the latest tech craze inspiring high hopes of improving education.

AI teacher training
Already, most teachers are being provided AI training, according to recent research by the RAND Corporation. Three-quarters of K-12 districts will have provided training on AI use by this fall, though the training varies widely and is most often optional. But not dealing with AI isn’t an option as students increasingly use AI tools, such as ChatGPT, on their own for homework and research, and the issue of AI plagiarism gets worse.

Cue a new White House initiative that aims to give K-12 students basic AI competency and to train teachers on best practices. The executive order includes a nationwide competition to highlight top AI uses, a push for public-private partnerships, and new federal funding for AI projects. There will also be a focus on apprenticeships and career options for high schoolers. The goal is to “ensure the U.S. remains a global leader in this technological revolution.”

The new federal effort aims to address one of the big current roadblocks. There is “a scarcity of external experts who are capable of providing appropriate training” for teachers, RAND found. One school leader told RAND that AI best practices simply don’t exist yet: “There are people that are claiming to have the best practices and are making money hand over fist.” The executive order aims to establish comprehensive AI teacher training and professional development.

Pushback from schools and parents
It will be a huge challenge to improve education outcomes with AI, though, as schools are tasked with adding AI in all subjects to students as young as kindergartners. Many schools are struggling to lift test scores back to pre-pandemic levels, and the adoption of AI is sure to be rocky.

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Pushback from teachers and parents will be common, with worries about the risks of generative AI and the potential of it hindering learning. AI adoption could come into tension with the push to get smartphones and screens out of classrooms so kids can focus. Plus, measuring AI’s effect on educational outcomes could take years and will require careful tracking and data collection.

But there are lots of potential benefits of AI: Students can get a personalized, conversational tutor. Teachers can get help with administrative tasks, training and curriculum creation. And students graduate with in-demand AI know-how.

Education tech
The trend will open the floodgates to spending on AI education tech. There will be a shift of federal education funding and grants to all sorts of AI efforts, prompted by the recent White House action. Private organizations are likely to spend big on new AI initiatives. Meanwhile, states and local districts will budget more for AI tech. Expect some states to go all-in, while others go slow.

The new AI investment will go to large companies, such as Microsoft and Google; AI labs, such as OpenAI and Anthropic; and a range of edtech players and other start-ups.

This forecast first appeared in The Kiplinger Letter, which has been running since 1923 and is a collection of concise weekly forecasts on business and economic trends, as well as what to expect from Washington, to help you understand what’s coming up to make the most of your investments and your money. Subscribe to The Kiplinger Letter.

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John Miley is a Senior Associate Editor at The Kiplinger Letter. He mainly covers AI, technology, telecom and education, but will jump on other business topics as needed. In his role, he provides timely forecasts about emerging technologies, business trends and government regulations. He also edits stories for the weekly publication and has written and edited email newsletters.

He holds a BA from Bates College and a master’s degree in magazine journalism from Northwestern University, where he specialized in business reporting. An avid runner and a former decathlete, he has written about fitness and competed in triathlons.