There’s a difficult reality students and teachers are contending with in classrooms: there’s no foolproof tool to detect a student using artificial intelligence (AI) as a form of cheating on an assignment. Some students are using AI to cheat. But many insist they are not, even when software flags their assignments as AI-generated. While detection software is marketed as the solution to singling out cheaters, a chorus of educators and students insist that it doesn’t…
It’s been more than a year since ChatGPT’s ability to produce astonishingly humanlike writing sparked fundamental questions about the role of artificial intelligence in K-12 education. Most school districts are still stuck in neutral, trying to figure out the way forward on issues such as plagiarism, data privacy, and ethical use of AI tools by students and educators. Glenn Kleiman, a member of the advisory committees for the TeachAI initiative and the Consortium for School…
There’s no doubt that more and more kids are getting cell phones. According to a study by Common Sense Media, nearly nine in 10 teens aged 13-18 own a smartphone; and 23% of kids own a smartphone by age 8. While cell phones provide convenience, they can be a huge distraction to kids, which leaves many folks wondering: should cell phones be allowed in school? There’s a case to be made both for why phones…
While there is broad consensus among education and technology experts that students will need to be AI literate by the time they enter the workforce, when and how, exactly, students should be introduced to this tech is less prescribed. That leaves teachers with the difficult task today of determining when it is age-appropriate to introduce students to artificially intelligent technologies, and they’re largely doing it without a road map. There is no avoiding AI; whether…
The presence of cell phones in schools has ignited one of the most enduring debates in modern education. Educators, parents, and students often find themselves split between the benefits and the drawbacks of allowing cell phones in the classroom. Should schools ban them entirely, or can they be harnessed as powerful tools for learning? One of the strongest arguments for banning cell phones in schools is the distraction they pose. Research has shown that students…
When hackers hit a school district, they can expose student data like Social Security numbers, home addresses, and even disability and disciplinary records. Now, cybersecurity advocates warn that the Trump administration’s budget and personnel cuts, along with rule changes, are stripping away key defenses that schools need. “Cyberattacks on schools are escalating and just when we need federal support the most, it’s being pulled away,” said Keith Krueger, chief executive officer of the Consortium for…
Last year, Roosevelt Middle School in San Francisco, California introduced a campus-wide cellphone and smartphone ban. That meant devices are “off and away at all times while you’re on campus,” said Emily Leicham, Roosevelt Middle School’s principal. Among those in favor of the policy was Marta Lindsey, whose child started sixth grade at Roosevelt in fall 2024. She said that the cellphone bans were the reason her family chose the school as their first pick…
Does AI actually help students learn? A recent experiment in a high school provides a cautionary tale. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found that Turkish high school students who had access to Chat GPT while doing practice math problems did worse on a math test compared with students who didn’t have access to Chat GPT. Those with Chat GPT solved 48% more of the practice problems correctly, but they ultimately scored 17% worse on…
If you’re like many digitally savvy Americans, it has likely been a while since you’ve spent much time writing by hand. The laborious process of tracing out our thoughts, letter by letter, on the page is becoming a relic of the past in our screen-dominated world, where text messages and thumb-typed grocery lists have replaced handwritten letters and sticky notes. Electronic keyboards offer obvious efficiency benefits that have undoubtedly boosted our productivity — imagine having…
Even after years of intensive intervention and tutoring, dyslexic students can continue to struggle with reading and writing. That’s why advances in technology tools have been invaluable to students who read and write slowly. Dyslexic students are finding they can complete assignments faster when they employ special features on a laptop or iPad that help work around their dyslexia-related issues. In order to fully maximize how technology tools can help students with learning differences, educator…
