foundation and the development of skills. An area discussed by many on the day and listed by the TBI as an emerging challenge along with a lack of vision on AI leading to a ‘strategic drift’. However, solutions to combat cognitive offloading are far from simple, with suggestions by some that a more multi-faceted policy approach would work better than an enforced sanction or ban of AI use in classrooms. Sally Thomas, senior policy manager at the National Education Union (NEU) which brings together the voices of nearly half a million educators and school leaders, talked about some of the challenges their members are facing. ‘There’s a real necessity to ensure


that AI is being used in a way that really supports learning without harming cognitive development, as well as social and emotional development and wellbeing, and this is something our members are really concerned about,” she said. “In an NEU survey asking if AI


use amongst students had declined their critical thinking skills – 66% of secondary teacher members said that they thought it had and we know this is something that is backed up by wider evidence and research so we really need to address those risks.”


AI & ASSESSMENTS Speakers went on to explore how teachers and students are using AI tools in different ways from learning to assessment. While others discussed ways


schools are able to automate and integrate AI into LMS systems for more adaptive and personalised learning for students. As well as being able to generate reports, manage timetables, track attendance and flag concerns. Delegates shared how the use of AI marking tools are becoming more widespread with the growing accuracy of tools such as No More Marking. Meredith Reeve, a research


strategist at Pearson, shared findings from a report on the impact of generative AI on formative assessment and teacher’s perception of this in light of extensive media coverage over the last year on cheating.


7


Interestingly, she revealed a


perception gap when it came to AI and formative assessments. “When we asked teachers


whether they thought their own students were using generative AI for formative assessment, only 24% did, which is at odds very much with self-reported data by students across different surveys over the last couple of years, which shows students at the region of 80-90% use and growing steadily. What was also striking, was that only half of teachers reported that their school or college had an AI policy in place.” The Pearson School and College


report found that just 16% of school teachers and 27% of college tutors say they feel confident in teaching students about AI. Raising questions about what guardrails are in place and the confidence that teachers might feel to innovate safely, said Reeve, echoing others on the day. Looking forward, she noted


a number of ways to improve formative assessment design for the current speed of change and


urged delegates to think of it as more of a ‘basket of evidence’ demonstrating what students know and can do. Recommending an assessment approach that is more holistic, student-centred, tighter aligned to learning outcomes, and multimodal. “We know the speed of change


here is unlike anything we’ve seen before. We’re talking about change in weeks and months rather than years. We also know that education at system level is a slow-moving ship. So, this is a challenge, but by allowing students and teachers the permission to innovate within carefully designed guardrails, there’s an opportunity for us to strengthen formative assessment practice, and to make it more effective, whilst also developing the AI literacy and critical thinking skills that are going to be so important for students in their work and in their lives alongside AI.”


Westminster Forum disclaimer: Please note speakers have not had the opportunity for corrections.


GUIDE TO INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION & SCHOOLS AI IN EDUCATION


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