Whether the thought of using AI in your classroom is exciting or terrifying, whether you were an early adopter or still haven’t tried it, artificial intelligence is something you need to pay attention to.

AI is changing daily, and while you may already use it in your class, you still need to stay up-to-date on the risks and benefits of AI in education.

AI is everywhere. Just because you haven’t tried it yet doesn’t mean your students aren’t, and having a better understanding of it will not only make your life easier but will also help you help your students use it more effectively.

 AI isn’t just a buzzword anymore — it’s in our search engines, grading tools, and even lesson plans. But what does that mean for K-12 teachers who already feel maxed out?

The K-12 subcommittee of the SREB Commission on AI in Education has created a free guide to help educators thoughtfully and ethically bring AI into their classrooms.

I recently sat down with Leslie Eaves, SREB’s project-based learning program director and a lead contributor to the report, to unpack what the report means and how teachers can start using it to make life easier in their classrooms today.

You can read the important takeaways from the interview here, listen to our podcast episode by searching for “Class-Act Coaching” wherever you listen to your podcasts, or watch the interview on our YouTube channel.

What’s in the Report?

The report outlines four “pillars” of how AI can enhance teaching and learning:

1. Creating Cognitively Demanding Tasks
2. Streamlining Teacher Workflows
3. Personalizing Learning for Students
4. Developing Ethical and Proficient AI Users

Each pillar includes both opportunities for educators to enhance their teaching experiences (and those of their students) and cautions of things they need to be aware of and communicate to their students.

The report doesn’t assume you’re a tech expert — it’s built for real-world educators.

In our interview, Leslie pointed out that each of these pillars is important and while some may be easier to start with, each one is equal to the other. So pointed out that they called them pillars for a reason, as she thinks of them “as like pillars of a house or a foundation.” Removing one causes the whole house to collapse.

We are going to break down each of these pillars in depth and look at how educators can use them in K-12 schools in subsequent episodes, but for now, let’s focus on how to start using the report.

Where Should You Start?

Teachers are busy people, and we want them to see this report as something to make their lives easier, not add more to their to-do list. With that, I asked Leslie where someone should start with this report, especially anyone who has no idea how to get started with AI.

Her answer came quickly: if you are brand new to AI, start with Pillar 2, which focuses on how teachers can use AI to streamline their own tasks and free up time on their plates. Here are some of the ideas Leslie had for someone wanting to get started with the second pillar:

• Ask an AI tool to create a class newsletter draft.
• Have it generate group configurations based on student needs.
• Use it as a lesson planning assistant or idea generator.

These are small, low-risk ways to get familiar with AI—and they can save you hours.

Starting here is a great way to free up time so that when you start exploring the other pillars, you not only feel more comfortable playing with AI tools and are better able to help your students, but you also have more time to explore.

Who Is This For?

While the big answer is that it was designed for everyone in education, it’s also a document that is directly useful for teachers who want to try out AI in their classes (within the rules in place in their schools, of course).

What Are Some Practical Takeaways Teachers Can Use Even if They Never Look at the Report?

While we hope everyone takes the time to at least skim this report, I did want to make sure that anyone listening to the episode – or reading this post – got something they could use from it even if they didn’t read the report. So, Leslie shared one benefit and one caution she wants every educator to know about AI in the classroom.

An AI Wonder

Leslie pointed out that one of the wonders of AI is how helpful it is in the lesson planning process. Both of us cautioned listeners that AI is meant to be a tool, and Leslie wanted to make it clear that knowledge instruction is only one part of a teacher’s job. Teachers and students will always remain at the heart of the learning process.

However, AI can be an incredible brainstorming partner.

Leslie pointed out that planning can be one of the hardest parts of teaching, and it is easy to get stuck. AI is a great way to find some ideas that help you get unstuck.

You’ll still need to edit and refine those ideas, but once you know the idea, it’s a whole lot easier to plan.

AI can also help you customize your own great ideas to the interests of your students. You may have a great worksheet on fractions, but students aren’t interested. So, maybe you ask AI to take your worksheet and turn it into problems connected to sports or your students’ interests. It’s still your educational content, but AI helped you make it more relatable to your students.

An AI Caution

AI can be a great educational tool; however, just like all tools, it is only as powerful and accurate as the person who wields it.

Not all tools are created equal. From producing fake facts to misidentifying student writing as AI generated, AI can give us some unreliable information.

It’s important to double-check sources and use your professional judgment. Don’t just assume everything it says is correct because it was a machine that created it.

Why Should You Care About AI?

AI will only become more embedded in the way we teach and learn. The earlier educators engage with it, the more influence they’ll have in shaping AI’s role in schools.

More Resources

This is the first in a series of posts, videos and podcast episodes we will be doing on this report.

Next up: We break down the first pillar — how AI can help you create cognitively demanding student tasks.

To learn more:

• Download the free report: Guidance for the Use of AI in the K12 Classroom
• Listen to the episode
• Watch the video version