Why parents worry about their kids using AI in school

Artificial intelligence is evolving fast. So how are parents feeling about their kids and their teachers using it in classrooms? I think it definitely needs to be regulated in the schools. And I think that a lot of the parents that I know in this school especially feel the same way. Kids have to know the difference between what's real and what's not real. There's a lot to think about here. Privacy risks, dependency and plagiarism. But how these concerns are being handled depends on where you live. Here's how New York City, the largest school district in North America, is dealing with it. So beginning this school year, we will implement a one-year moratorium on generative AI for students in 2K through 8th grade. So I wondered how Nova Scotia is regulating the use of AI in our public education system. Well, it turns out there is no province-wide policy on how, when, or why AI is introduced into the classroom. It's up to each regional center for education to make their own rules about the technology. And that doesn't sit well with some. I think it's an equity issue if we don't have all regional centers either having some kind of consistent policy or have the province come in with one for all. Post wants Nova Scotia to follow New York's lead. She even started a petition. Instead of just blazing ahead with it, we should be pausing and not make the same mistakes we've done with ed tech or even social media and other tools like that. The Halifax Regional Center for Education is the only center that's published a set of guidelines touching on ethics, safety, and academic integrity. But in other regions, teachers are being told to use their professional judgment. The president of the teachers' union says many of his members are avoiding computers altogether, choosing to assign pen and paper in class assessments so students aren't tempted to use AI chatbots. I'll liken it to, you know, if students are taking an industrial arts class where they're going to use a bandsaw or they're going to use a planer. They have to learn the safety of using those tools before they're actually able to use those tools. And I don't see AI as that much different. But Day says teachers can't show students how to use AI appropriately if they don't feel comfortable with it first. Right now, teachers can take local professional development courses or they can lean on their regional tech support teams. They can also enroll in a summer IT camp on their own time. But the experts I spoke with say more learning opportunities are needed. An official with the education department says core skills like literacy, math, and critical thinking will support students and how they use AI for learning. But again, I can't stress enough, those foundational skills have not gone away because of AI. If anything, it's caused us to really double down on our efforts. Post and Day insist there needs to be a province-wide policy on AI in education because it is evolving so fast. The province says that's an ongoing conversation. Our approach will continue to evolve as AI evolves, and we really are seeing it happening in real time. For now, AI will be in Nova Scotia schools. How each student uses it, though, will largely depend on which classroom they walk into. Selena Alders, CBC News, Halifax.