Multiple districts — When it comes to being prepared for the rapidly increasing role of artificial intelligence in society, Kent County educators are putting their heads together to prepare strategies and roadmaps for responsible integration into school districts.
Kentwood, Godwin Heights, Godfrey-Lee, Grand Rapids, Kelloggsville and East Grand Rapids administrators are collaborating with Thru Consulting on what integration of AI in K-12 schools can look like and related topics. The firm works with districts across the country to assess their current use of AI and to develop roadmaps for future integration.
“The power of this group is collaboration,” said Kentwood Public Schools Superintendent Kevin Polston. “We can learn from each other. It’s helpful to have a community of practice that’s broader than just our district.”
The group recently met for a fourth two-hour session at East Kentwood High School, sharing on progress that has come out of previous sessions. The group has worked since January on topics including AI resources, guiding principles and working with stakeholders. A final session is planned in June.
How to Best Use AI?
Districts are at various stages in planning for AI, with many considering it an ongoing project that will evolve over time. Superintendents talked with SNN about their goals in taking part in the collaboration:
“We are so at the infancy stage at Kellogsville with using AI and what that can do to help teaching and learning,” said Kelloggsville Superintendent Jim Alston. “We are trying to get an idea of where to start — not just put these AI tools in front of staff members to say, ‘Use this,’ but, ‘How can it transform and improve what you are doing in the classroom?’
“We are trying to actually enhance that interpersonal relationship with teachers and students, and trying to use AI to create those efficiencies to do that. This is not going to take the place of teaching, ever, because AI and technology are never going to be able to replace an interpersonal relationship.”
‘It’s moving really fast, and we want to make sure we are keeping up to date with it and utilizing the best tools for what we are trying to do.’
— Godfrey-Lee Public Schools Superintendent Arnetta Thompson
GRPS Superintendent Leadriane Roby said the district is in the beginning phases of understanding AI and best practices around it.
“We want to make sure we are preparing our scholars as well as our staff to understand how to navigate AI in a way that is responsible, allows access to information you can get quickly, but does not trade in the ability to have thoughtful, reflective, hard conversations. … We don’t want to change people’s ability to think critically.”
Adaptability and flexibility are key, she said.
“We are still looking through what policy should look like, and we will lean on other districts that have started to develop policies, understanding it has to be adaptable and malleable to current conditions,” she said.
Godfrey-Lee Superintendent Arnetta Thompson said the district is also looking at ways AI will best serve the community.
“I’m hoping we will have a solid plan of how to embed AI opportunities throughout our system to help with basically everything — in the HR department, curriculum and instruction, and just making sure we are doing our due diligence with providing this opportunity for staff and students,” she said.
“We want to make sure we are keeping up with AI. It’s moving really fast, and we want to make sure we are keeping up to date with it and utilizing the best tools for what we are trying to do.”
‘We don’t want to change people’s ability to think critically.’
— GRPS Superintendent Leadriane Roby
Polston said AI’s potential in school is exciting, but hard to comprehend.
“I really think the magnitude — the scale — of the change is really difficult for us to understand right now. The analogy we use is, most things in education are incremental in change. … AI is exponential in change. If you were to take 30 one-meter steps, you would walk 30 meters. if you were to do 30 exponential meter steps, that would be the equivalent of 26 times around the Earth. Our brain doesn’t process that change.”
At a minimum, AI will make our schools operate more efficiently, he said. One example: AI tools can amplify human interactions by saving time educators spend on tasks outside of face-to-face teaching.
Said Polston, “What’s important is that we center our values on relationships.”
Read more:
• AI Summit highlights classroom uses for artificial intelligence
• Utilizing AI to ‘help the world’
