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Judging by the tsunami of sales pitches that school district leaders get from ed tech companies, artificial intelligence is the antidote to every problem in education today. However, there’s every reason to be apprehensive — so many tech products over the last 30 years have overpromised and underdelivered.

As an underlying technology, AI does seem different — more conversational, more flexible, more powerful. Most notably, past ed tech products have relied on multiple-choice tests that don’t always accurately assess a student’s understanding of different concepts. Now, AI can analyze and react to open-ended student responses, helping to boost critical thinking skills and deepen comprehension. In addition, AI provides real-time visibility into each student’s performance so teachers can be more strategic with classroom discussions.

Here are three guiding principles to help educators be rigorous when selecting AI tools to pilot and scale as they lean into this new chapter of teaching:

First, rather than look to develop an “AI strategy,” district leaders should create a strategy for teaching and learning and use AI to power specific aspects of it. They should start by identifying goals and priorities, then ask: What can AI do to help our district achieve them?

In both our districts, the most urgent focus was increasing student achievement. To help schools achieve this goal and narrow down potential tools from the 300-plus AI education products on the market, district leaders centered objectives on implementing high-quality instructional materials, increasing teacher effectiveness and improving student engagement and well-being.

Our districts landed on an AI tool that creates high-quality, interactive experiences for students with personalized feedback and support to deepen their understanding of the curriculum. It also directs educators’ attention in real time to the students who most need help. By combining the power of top-rated curricula and AI, teachers can embed intervention-type support into core instruction.

Second, ed tech providers should design their tools with teachers, students and district leaders, not just for them. Part of the reason educators have not gotten needed quality and usability out of products in their schools is that vendors exclude teachers and students from the development process.

A big part of why teachers and students in our districts are enthusiastic about this AI solution is that educators were able to offer feedback directly to ed tech company leaders who regularly visited our schools — and then implemented that feedback. This fall, Sumner County teachers asked to make the AI writing support more bite-sized, giving students an initial score, one piece of feedback at a time and the ability to revise their writing multiple times and update their grade. A Denver Public School leader asked whether AI could identify the most common misconceptions students were having in class, which led to an expanding suite of real-time analysis tools. Students asked for more clarity into their progress at each step, more celebrations and the ability to customize their experience.

Because every voice was valued and the solutions evolved to meet stakeholders’ needs, both student achievement in English Language Arts and teacher satisfaction have increased. In Sumner County, the six schools using the tool have shown significantly more progress on their English assessments than the six schools not using it, and 90% of teachers reported that the product made their jobs easier and more enjoyable.

Third, educators must break the ed tech habit of having students work silently on their own personalized pathways with headsets on and without interacting with their classmates. Instead, AI should emphasize the social experience of learning and foster connection, inclusion and discourse. 

At our districts, a top priority is the effective implementation of high-quality instructional materials. While various schools have chosen different, top-rated curricula, they share a vision of classrooms with rich and interesting texts, student writing and lots of discussion both in small groups and the full class. District leaders want AI products that bring schools closer to this vision. Rather than dedicating 20 minutes a day to a supplemental, skills-based tool that students work on silently, teachers should have tools that make collaboration easier and give students more confidence to bring their insights into full-class discussions. 

AI brings new possibilities for better ed tech, but schools will realize this potential only if district leaders lean into this moment, guided by their goals and values. If they do, they can create future-ready schools that prioritize transformative student outcomes and human connection.

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