Over the past several years, many educational changes and developments have significantly impacted students and teachers. Each new development is often met with questions, concerns, and curiosity. When Generative AI (GenAI) first came onto the scene as Chat-GPT, there were many questions about how it could be used, its limitations, and its overall impact. (OpenAI, 2022) Thankfully, different GenAI models and programs have continued to be developed with their unique focuses and ways of doing things, allowing specialized development in several fields.

Before fully jumping into adopting GenAI, it is essential to understand some of its limitations. When using GenAI to research or create a written document, it is not uncommon for false information to be presented as fact; different GenAI models will also provide non-sensical statements. (OpenAI, 2022) Since GenAI is not always accurate, it can make it easy for a user to become confused when using it and not be able to build a complete understanding of the content or topic. There also tend to be common words or phrases that GenAI models like to use that are often outside of everyday vocabulary for most people, which can make it obvious if someone is using GenAI or not.

GenAI in K-12 education in 2024

When it comes to educational implications and uses for GenAI, there are always examples of it being used in ethically questionable ways, such as writing papers. However, there is research to show how it can help those who struggle or have documented learning needs benefit from the support. (Bozkurt et al., 2023) Currently, the GenAI options in education are adaptive tutoring systems, dialogue-based tutoring systems, automatic writing evaluations, and chatbots. (Holmes, 2023) These different types of GenAI have been used to form multiple models or programs that can support users in learning or creating content. When applied to education, GenAI is used in many ways to help educators and students in learning better, understanding, or sharing their knowledge.

In education, it is expected to differentiate or personalize learning for students for many different reasons, such as being an English Language Learner (ELL), having an exceptionality or other type of learning need, or having medical needs that impact learning. Using GenAI, it is simple for teachers to alter or personalize text, difficulty, or length to allow each learner to showcase their knowledge best. (Cotton et al., 2023) This will enable educators to easily alter an assignment or assessment to allow students to fully express what they have learned while still meeting grade-level curricular goals. Although educators had been making these adaptations before easy access to GenAI, it is easier now for educators to ensure that all content is being assessed.

It is no secret that students use GenAI models to complete research, write papers, and solve complex problems. Many educators are looking towards work completed in class to make up a more significant percentage of marks or if GenAI is used for it to be appropriately cited and documented. This would allow for work to be completed in a way that will enable each student to be successful but emphasizes academic integrity and the new policies of school districts, school boards, school ministries, and post-secondary institutions. (Cotton et al., 2023) Making students aware of academic integrity and plagiarism early will help them fully understand what it means and hopefully allow them to properly document their work and give credit where it is due. Educating students on these policies is the best way to prevent them from plagiarizing work in the future. (Cotton et al., 2023) For those using GenAI to help with schoolwork, it is essential to document how and why it was used correctly. It would also be necessary to reflect on this afterward and determine how it helped and what could have helped more. Doing this can help students and educators better understand problematic concepts or skills and how to move forward.

Since GenAI is still considered new and unknown, many questions are being asked about it, and ultimately, there is a lot of fear or unease. This has resulted in many school districts trying to limit, restrict, or ban its use at school—the B.C. Ministry of Education states that GenAI can enrich our education and allow for a more significant focus on student-centred activities. (Care, n.d.) Teachers are encouraged to use their professional judgment to determine what activities, resources, evaluation processes, and AI tools they use in their classrooms. (Considerations for Using AI Tools in K-12 Schools Considerations for Using AI Tools in K-12 Schools Contents, n.d.) As long as what is selected is accessible and does not violate more extensive rules such as privacy, teachers should be able to use whatever resources or tools they feel will support their students best. For those districts or schools with limited or banned access to GenAI, it is likely something that will change as more is discovered about how these tools can support educators and students.

GenAI in K-12 education: 2030 and beyond

Due to its nature, GenAI is constantly growing, changing, and improving. This allows us all to be students at once and learn how it can support us as educators and students. Current students need to know the value and use of GenAI and other new technology, as they will be expected to use it properly. In order to use GenAI to its fullest, it is necessary to understand how it can support learners and teachers. According to Bozkurt (2023), GenAI offers personalized learning, inclusive curriculum, enhanced collaboration, automated assessment, improved accessibility, developing language skills, and enhanced access to support. Depending on what GenAI supports are available and what is being used, there may be support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Under the assumption that there will be further development and growth of GenAI, it can become overwhelming to consider what K-12 education may look like in 2030 and beyond. However, it is essential to be open to the possibilities before us. We can currently use GenAI to help us brainstorm a story idea and find critical pieces of a story, such as the main events and setting. There are also tools, such as MagicSchoolai, that use a chatbot for students to talk to a historical figure such as Terry Fox, King Henry VII, or Cleopatra to learn more about them, their lives, or critical things happening around them. (MagicSchool.ai – AI for Teachers – Lesson Planning and More!, n.d.) These tools help students find information and, in many cases, can start the writing process. With tools like MagicSchoolai, it is easy for teachers to monitor what students can do independently and what they use GenAI to generate or complete.

Academic integrity and plagiarism will likely be an even larger topic as GenAI and other new technologies play a role in education. It will be necessary to document not only sources of information but also when and where GenAI was used. This is already in the academic integrity policies of most schools, but they will likely need to grow and change just as often as technology does. This could, however, make it easier for teachers to see what many students are capable of with GenAI support, forcing teachers to return to in-class writing assignments or projects with multiple check-in points to monitor progress.

It is also possible that whatever way GenAI develops and grows is entirely outside of what we can imagine. When applying GenAI to education, it is essential to remember how and why it is being developed. This includes remaining focused on diversity and inclusion, seeing if educators were part of the design process, whether it aligns with public policies in terms of safety and security, and whether there is a meaningful way for teachers to gain experience and training. (Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Teaching and Learning, n.d.) For GenAI to have a positive and meaningful role in education, each GenAI tool, program, or model needs to be developed with educators and for educators.

Conclusion

Although GenAI has been around for several years, it was not until the development and broad adoption of Chat-GPT that it was looked at as a negative or something we needed to limit or control. Since then, many positive adoptions of GenAI and even multiple professions require the use and understanding of GenAI. GenAI must be included and explained within K -12 education as it will help students build a more extensive knowledge of it and its limitations. It also provides various support for ELL students or students with exceptionalities, allowing them to share their learning better and express their opinions. For this to happen, there needs to be a better understanding of the advantages of GenAI and how it can support students and educators. It is clear that GenAI is here to stay, so instead of fighting it, the K -12 education system needs to find a way to prepare students and allow teachers the autonomy to use what they deem most helpful in their classrooms.
 
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