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Chicago school board candidates split over AI use in classrooms
A Chicago parent group is urging school board candidates to support a three-year pause on generative AI in CPS, while others argue students need to learn how to use the rapidly evolving technology safely.
CHICAGO - The use of artificial intelligence in schools is sparking debate and pushback across the country — weighing the need to protect students from rapidly evolving technology against preparing them for a world where AI is becoming part of daily life.
Now, one local parent group is asking Chicago School Board candidates to pledge their support for new limits on AI technology.
What we know:
Illinois Families for Public Schools (IFPS) is asking candidates who are running for the Chicago Board of Education to sign a pledge limiting AI use in Chicago Public Schools (CPS).
So far, about two dozen candidates have signed on to the "Pledge to Protect Human-Centered Education" — that's about half the candidate pool.
This fall, Chicago voters will elect representatives from all 20 school board districts, along with the board president, creating the first fully elected school board in the city's history.
The pledge also calls for a three-year moratorium on generative AI use in the district, the creation of a chief privacy officer position within CPS, and a ban on collecting students' biometric data.
The executive director of IFPS, Cassie Creswell, explained on Chicago LIVE why she believes those safeguards are needed now.
"This is experimental technology. It may have a lot of promise in the field of education, but right now, it really has a lot of risks and what experts are saying is that the benefits right now are not outweighed by the risks. And so, we really want any kind of rollout and integration of generative AI into education systems to be done extremely carefully and thoughtfully, and if it can't be done safely then it shouldn't be done at all," Creswell said. "We'd like this three-year moratorium so that the Board of Education can get real input from all stakeholders and set policies that are truly protective."
IFPS was founded 10 years ago. The nonprofit says its vision is for every family in Illinois to have access to a well-resourced local public school.
What they're saying:
A spokesperson for Chicago Public Schools issued the following statement to FOX Chicago on Tuesday, writing in part:
"Chicago Public Schools (CPS) welcomes the promising innovation of artificial intelligence (AI) in teaching and learning, while safeguarding the development of students’ foundational skills and critical thinking. As students arrive with varying degrees of familiarity with generative AI, District administrators and teachers are working to provide both faculty and students with high-quality, deeply-vetted AI literacy materials and AI tools as well as the implementation guardrails and policies that help reinforce a rigorous, high-quality education.
"The District’s researched-based approach regarding the responsible adoption of AI are well documented in our published guidebook, which includes our AI Access Overview, and instructional playbook.
"In its Statewide Guidance on the Use of Artificial Intelligence to the Governor and General Assembly, the Illinois State Board of Education listed the CPS Artificial Intelligence Guidebook as a model policy, one of the few district model policies in the country and the only in Illinois."
IFPS also alleges that CPS was on the verge of rolling out an AI chatbot in every high school student's Chromebook. However, CPS tells FOX Chicago that those claims are "inaccurate and highly misleading."
What's next:
CPS has published an "AI at CPS" webpage where parents and families can learn more about how the technology is being used in schools.
The Source: The information came from an interview with Cassie Creswell from Illinois Families for Public Schools and Chicago Public Schools.