LAWRENCE, Ind. (WISH) — As students go back to school, we’re taking a deeper dive into Artificial Intelligence in education. The learning landscape is changing; experts at Purdue University say AI is here, and in most cases, it’s already in schools.

The Metropolitan School District of Lawrence Township goes back to class on Wednesday. The district says this year students of all ages and teachers will be using a program called School AI.

“We’ve got to teach students the appropriate use, but not to be afraid of AI,” Troy Knoderer, Lawrence Township’s chief academic officer, said. “Prepare students for what’s next and in order to do that we’ve got to engage them with ai because it’s here.”

After testing the program out last year, Knoderer is overseeing district-wide AI implementation this school year. He is helping teachers introduce the district’s new chat bot, named “Dot”, to students.

“Part of our work last year then was also adopting school board policy. Policy around AI that really sets the vision for the district, indicates that we’re embracing AI as a school district, indicates the uses that that we would approve. And then the things that students can’t do —  around academic integrity and making sure that we’re using it to move learning forward,” Knoderer added.

He says teachers can use School AI as a tool to be more efficient. It can help them grade work faster and create lesson plans.

As for students, teachers will be in control of School AI and how students utilize it. They will create “spaces” for kids to work in at school and dictate what is allowed and what information is given through AI. The chatbot Dot can talk back and forth or communicate via text. It will even be able to help with language barriers and at times can be used for translation.

For older students, a teacher can monitor in real-time how students are interacting with an assignment. The AI can also speed up the ability to give feedback quickly on an essay.

For younger students the chat bot can act as research guide, or act as a tutor and help kids solve math problems.

The district says it will have clear conversations to help students understand the technology and that Dot is not human.

“That’s an important part of the teaching of AI. That this is a chatbot, and many students know the term robot, so it’s a chatbot that you’re interacting with. But your teacher is in the middle of that conversation that you’re having,” Knoderer said.

What if students use AI outside of school? The district says teachers are trained to watch out for cheating.

“Part of the training for our teachers is how to spot AI generated writing and really knowing who your students are as students and being able to recognize when something’s not their voice or not their work,” Knoderer explained.

When asked why the district is approaching AI in this manner, Knoderer emphasized that AI is here and students are already accessing the technology outside of school. He calls it a “turning point” in education.

“We need to teach them how to use it appropriately, how to deepen their learning,” Knoderer said.

He says districts across Indiana are doing the same thing. Zionsville Community Schools uses a program called Magic School AI and is featured on their website as a success story. Schools are mostly using Assistive AI, which enhances and supports humans, rather than Generative AI, which focuses on creating new content or images.

Deel Khan, a former school principal in Denver, Colorado, is the CEO of Magical School AI. He says that if kids aren’t taught how to use generative AI responsibly in school, they won’t be prepared for the future.

“Generative AI is happening. We can’t stop it. So, either we are preparing our kids really well for it to enter this world and be really thoughtful about how they use it. Or we’re doing we’re doing them a disservice and we’re not giving them the opportunity to – you know – live in this world in a way that’s really responsible and thoughtful,” Khan explained.

He says there are 28,000 teachers using his program in Indiana and the company is partnered with 35 districts.

“While we are partnered with 35 existing school districts in the state, there’s a user of Magic School in every school and district in the country, by our count,” Khan said.

He says it’s a tool than can help curb teacher burnout and help students understand technology before they discover it on their own.

But using AI at school needs to be well thought out, Khan adds.

“Of course these are responsible use cases like getting feedback on your writing, instead of having AI write the essay for you, or exploring generative AI with some guardrails to make sure it is being used appropriately,” Khan said.

In Lawrence Township, that appropriate use is preparation for life after school.

“The other reality is that AI-related jobs are among the fastest growing in the world right now. And so in preparing students for what they might go into as a career, we’ve got to expose them to AI,” Knoderer explained.

Lawrence Township says the Indiana Department of Education is funding their AI pilot program with a $55,000 grant this year. Teachers will start introducing it to students this week.

Next in this series, WISH-TV looks at college AI use. We explore how Purdue University setting AI guidance for professors and students, and how the school combats cheating. That story will air next Monday, Aug. 11, on Daybreak.

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