The U.S. Department of Education announced this week another proposed priority for discretionary grant programs: advancing the use of artificial intelligence in education.
The proposed supplementary grantmaking priority would 鈥減romote the appropriate integration of AI into education,鈥� as well as provide training for 糖心动漫vlog, and foster early exposure to AI concepts and technology to develop an AI-ready workforce, according to on July 21.
鈥淎rtificial intelligence has the potential to revolutionize education and support improved outcomes for learners,鈥� said Education Secretary Linda McMahon in . 鈥淚t drives personalized learning, sharpens critical thinking, and prepares students with problem-solving skills that are vital for tomorrow鈥檚 challenges.鈥�
The recommendation comes three months after President Donald Trump signed an executive order that calls for infusing AI throughout K-12 education, including training 糖心动漫vlog to incorporate it into their daily tasks and teaching students how to use it effectively. The order requires the education secretary to issue guidance on using formula and discretionary grant funds to improve education outcomes using AI.
While AI technologies have been around for decades, attention to them spiked in 2022 following the release of ChatGPT, a generative AI tool that can produce human-like conversational responses to prompts. Since then, districts have been grappling with what role the rapidly evolving technology should play in classrooms.
Considering the uncertainty around federal school funding, as the president continues to withhold more than $5 billion from states and districts, this proposed priority is 鈥渁 nice signal鈥� to school districts that it鈥檚 OK to use federal funds for AI-related activities, said Richard Culatta, the CEO of ISTE+ASCD.
But whether there will actually be grants to apply for, and whether the Education Department has the expertise to support K-12 schools in this initiative, remains to be seen, Culatta said, noting that the department鈥檚 office of education technology was shut down earlier this year.
鈥淭hese are great priorities,鈥� Culatta said. But there鈥檚 a 鈥渄ifference between priorities that are just on paper, and priorities that actually get implemented with support behind them, and I hope we see that.鈥�
What the proposed priorities include
The proposed priority to advance AI in education is broken down into two categories: expanding the understanding of AI and expanding the appropriate use of AI. Within those categories, the department has provided a list of what it would be interested in seeing from future grant proposals, including plans to:
- Support the integration of AI literacy skills and concepts into teaching and learning practices;
- Expand offerings of AI and computer science education in K-12;
- Provide professional development for 糖心动漫vlog on the integration of the fundamentals of AI into their respective subject areas;
- Partner with state or local education agencies to encourage dual-enrollment course offerings to earn credentials in AI-related coursework;
- Integrate AI-driven tools into classrooms to personalize learning, improve student outcomes, and support differentiated instruction.
Pat Yongpradit, the chief academic officer of , a nonprofit that promotes computer science education, applauded the proposal, especially because it doesn鈥檛 just focus on passively learning about AI technologies.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a call to awareness, but there鈥檚 also calls to action,鈥� he said.
Yongpradit said he was glad the draft acknowledges that computer science education is foundational for AI literacy, and that the work of integrating AI in education should be interdisciplinary.
He agreed with the department鈥檚 definition of AI literacy, too, which states: 鈥淭he technical knowledge, durable skills, and future ready attitudes required to thrive in a world influenced by AI. It enables learners to engage, create with, manage, and design AI, while critically evaluating its benefits, risks, and implications.鈥�
鈥淭his is a very empowering definition,鈥� said Yongpradit, who also leads the TeachAI initiative. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 equate AI literacy with prompt engineering and only that. There鈥檚 way more to it.鈥�
Culatta added that the department鈥檚 inclusion of using AI to improve teacher training and evaluation in its proposed priorities is a good idea.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 often left out of the conversation,鈥� he said.
What experts say is missing from the proposed priorities
What鈥檚 missing from the current version of the proposed priorities on AI, however, is ensuring that AI tools are built with student learning in mind, Culatta said.
鈥淎ll these things are great, but they assume that the AI tools are actually performing as they should,鈥� he said.
Additionally, there should be a focus on 鈥渃reating a healthy digital culture in schools,鈥� Culatta said.
Schools are being encouraged to step up their AI use and integration, but at the same time, at least 31 states and the District of Columbia are already restricting student cellphone use or planning to do so. Culatta emphasized that navigating those priorities means ensuring students know how to use technology in 鈥渨ays that aren鈥檛 dysfunctional and distracting.鈥�
For Yongpradit, what鈥檚 missing is a focus on researching AI鈥檚 impact on youth social-emotional and mental health.
鈥淲e need people to figure this stuff out, and that鈥檚 why it needs to be called out as an explicit priority in the language,鈥� Yongpradit said
The Education Department is accepting comments on the proposed priority on AI until Aug. 20, after which it will respond to the comments and then put out the final version. .
The proposed priority focused on AI is in addition to the priorities on evidence-based literacy, educational choice, and returning education to the states, which the department proposed in May.
