Without question, the use – and sometimes misuse – of Artificial Intelligence is one of the most pressing issues of our times. AI is a rapidly changing technology that’s growing in popularity and quickly embedding itself within our daily routines. Recognizing that students are often the first adopters of new technology, the question for schools arises: Should AI be used within the classroom? If so, how can it best be incorporated?
Lake Highland Preparatory School, located in Orlando, FL, was early to the conversation surrounding AI. President Jim McIntyre views exposure to new technologies as a critical part of student preparation, recognizing that the current iteration of AI technology is only the beginning. As a college-preparatory school, LHP wants students to understand how to navigate AI and use it critically to support their learning process. The ultimate goal is to prepare graduates who are futurists, so that, no matter how technology shifts, LHP graduates will be able to anticipate the change.
“Part of our vision at Lake Highland is to develop and empower students with noble character, keen intellect, and an enduring love of learning to thrive in a highly competitive, widely collaborative, and ever-changing world,” he shares. “Our teachers’ adaptability and our students’ abilities to have the necessary critical thinking skills to adapt, embrace, and utilize this technology as a tool will increasingly inform how they see the world and their place in it.”
Traffic Control: Using a Red – Yellow – Green Light System for AI
LHP, which serves more than 2,000 students in PK through grade 12, began discussions about AI in 2022 as ChatGPT started gaining momentum. With a partnership between school administration and staff technology professionals, the middle and upper school crafted several tools to help both students and faculty plan for AI implementation.
By the summer of 2023, the development of an AI policy was underway. The goal was to allow teachers freedom to choose how to use AI in their classrooms while also allowing for adaptations as AI quickly changes and gains student influence. In the LHP lower school, student use of AI is currently limited to intermediate coding and robotics. The middle and upper schools adopted an easy-to-follow plan, dubbed the “Red – Yellow – Green Light” system, which launched at the start of the 2023 school year.
Mr. McIntyre attributes the success of the Red – Yellow – Green Light system to the program’s simplicity. There’s a sense of clarity for all students. Each assignment in grades 7-12 identifies if and how students are allowed to use AI in their work, as decided by individual teachers for each assignment or project. This program gives teachers autonomy while teaching students how to use AI responsibly.
For further exploration, students are also able to take an elective course focused on Artificial Intelligence.
Source: Syllabi Policies for AI Generative Tools
Launching the Plan
The LHP Red – Yellow – Green Light program has given teachers both flexibility and choice. Instead of instituting either a blanket allowance of or ban on AI, teachers are granted autonomy to determine if and how the technology fits into the needs of their students and curriculum. The color scheme policy was created with purpose, allowing teachers to choose easily from the three levels of AI use for each assignment. The color code scheme allowed teachers who were hesitant at the beginning of the year to adapt and become more familiar with AI, shifting from mostly red-light assignments to adding in more yellow and green-light approved projects over the course of the academic year.
Educating the school community – parents, students, and faculty – has yielded the best results, illustrating the possibilities of AI and driving the conversation away from fear. To inform parents of the school’s views on the role of AI in education, Lake Highland Preparatory School hosted a parent event to demonstrate the positive outcomes from using AI in the classroom. During the event, students shared their experiences and thoughts on how AI will impact their education and future career paths.
Supporting Faculty Through Change
Part of the key to success for the implementation of AI at LHP is the strong relationship between faculty and the educational technology team, led by Educational Technology Manager Brandi Goodman and EdTech Specialists Alex Golden, Jennifer Hencken, and Karen Krot.
In lower school, monthly grade-level meetings with EdTech provide continuing education for faculty on how to use AI tools to help with their role. Programs like Magic School AI are popular with lower school staff due to their user-friendly capabilities. Most lower school faculty are using an AI tool in some capacity to make their role more manageable.
LHP middle school faculty rely upon the expertise of their educational technology specialists for guidance and suggestions, allowing the EdTech team to take the reins on implementation, professional development, and conversations around safe usage with the students. The majority of the faculty at the LHP middle school campus either utilize AI themselves or allow students to use it. EdTech partners with teachers to encourage the safe and effective use of AI, including ways to benefit research, idea generation, and proper citation.
In the upper school, teachers are encouraged to explore AI within their content area and classroom dynamics. Beyond the Red – Yellow – Green Light plan, the school developed a four-week professional development course, available both in person and online, to assist upper school teachers with learning more about the best practices of AI in education.
Changing the Conversation
After a successful first year rollout of their AI plan, Lake Highland Preparatory School, as a community, has unanimously decided to keep the policy as established for the 2024-25 school year. The school will continue with teacher choice while utilizing the stop-light color choices as guidelines.
AI has changed conversations about what is being measured in the classroom and how AI can benefit learning rather than being used as a way of “cheating” or getting around an assignment. Students are learning how to use AI in an educational environment with the mentorship of teachers who have the opportunity to discuss the ethics and impact of AI.
While there is enthusiasm about the benefits of AI in enhancing personalized learning and developing essential skills, LHP is building conversations that allow for trust and transparency with the school’s policies and the use of AI in the classroom.
What’s Possible? Adopting an AI Policy
Thinking of implementing a school policy on AI? Curious to know what challenges lie ahead for allowing AI in the classroom? Lake Highland Preparatory School shares advice for schools who are interested in exploring artificial intelligence.
Adding AI to your school technology arsenal can bring a host of benefits, but the potential for misuse exists. Check out the upcoming SAIS webinar, Protecting Your School & Yourself From Deepfakes, for a conversation on how to best prepare your school. Join us Thursday, September 12, 2024, from 12:00-1:00 PM (Eastern).