Schools are constantly looking for ways to utilize technology to improve the educational experience. Educators have quickly understood that Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be used to help a variety of students as it can adapt to different learning styles. For example, AI can provide greater support for students who are English language learners, and it can be used by teachers to help analyze and interpret data. Some AI use requires sharing data and schools need to be mindful of sharing confidential information with a public AI application. Schools are also seeing that students have quickly realized that AI can write papers and do their homework. As such, there needs to be guidance for teachers, administrators, and students on how AI can and cannot be used.
Schools saw a huge increase in students and staff using AI applications which can be a valuable tool for teaching and learning. As with any technology, AI uses data and there have been some issues and concerns such as bias and privacy. Just as schools had to embrace the staff and students using the internet (remember when the internet did not exist?) and develop acceptable use policies that included by-products of use including plagiarism, cyber-bullying, and data privacy, schools will likely need to do the same thing with AI.
To help schools understand the pros and cons of using AI, the New York State Office of Technology Services (NYSOTS) has recently published policy guidelines for the acceptable use of AI technologies. Per the NYSOTS, “Agencies are encouraged to responsibly adopt AI technologies and should consider this policy a tool to aid in that adoption.” Furthermore, “while a [school district] may adopt a different policy, it must include the requirements set forth in this one. Where a conflict exists between this policy and an [school district’s] policy, the more restrictive policy will take precedence.” The NYSOTS policy includes the following sections:
- definitions and covered uses,
- use of AI,
- human oversight,
- fairness and equity and explain ability,
- transparency,
- AI risk assessment and management,
- AI inventory,
- privacy,
- security,
- technology,
- intellectual property,
- compliance, and
- definitions of key terms.
The NYSOTS policy also provides an appendix of acceptable and unacceptable use of AI examples. In doing some research on AI policies, we came across another sample where examples of use were categorized and color-coded as a traffic light system which may help users to better understand what use is acceptable (see proposed chart below from InnerDrive).
A good place to start is with your existing acceptable use policy and then layering on top the specific AI use cases and any known issues. As this is an area that is evolving, the AI policy will likely need to be reviewed and assessed on an on-going basis. It has become clear that responsible use of AI can be an effective educational tool as well as increasing efficiencies, but there are concerns over data privacy and misuse. As with all new processes, communication and education are paramount to ensure AI is used appropriately.
Adam Brigandi, CPA, MBA
Supervisor
Adam is a Supervisor who works with both nonprofit and special education clients. His auditing experience allows him to assist in vital audit functions such as systems testing and analysis.