Pasco school leaders drafting AI guidebook for students, teachers

PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — Pasco County schools are working to incorporate artificial intelligence into their classrooms and creating guidelines to keep students safe while using the powerful tool.

Gone are the days of slamming lockers. Now, students are slamming a keyboard.

“AI is everywhere. AI is embedded in almost all the technology and, talking to students, the students are asking for the rules and guidelines,” said Superintendent John Legg.

Talk about a sign of the times. Legg admits his students, even as young as elementary school age, are using artificial intelligence.

He said it’s high time for his district to set guardrails on how to use it.

“It’s not a policy, it’s a guideline of best practices. We looked at other school districts and universities to see what are their recommended best practices for AI, and we’re giving it to the teachers for them to decide how they best want to use it,” Legg said.

Instead of an “all or nothing” approach, Legg said the district will start slow.

This December, high school students older than 13 will have access to Microsoft Co-Pilot, an AI-powered assistant, that helps by answering questions, writing and even creating images.

In the 19-page draft guidelines, the district suggests students use AI to help “brainstorm ideas, research topics, practice writing or giving feedback. Ultimately, the district is clear in the document: “AI should help you learn — not do the work for you.”

“Twenty-five, 30 years ago, we thought it was the end of the world having computers,” Legg said. “And then they slowly emerged into the classroom, and now they’ve become part of our daily life that we use, along with any technology. (AI) is the next evolution of technology in the classroom.”

Pasco school leaders are also making an effort to promote ethical use of AI. Teachers have access to AI writing detection tools and are being told to document instances of students using AI for the wrong reasons.

But Legg acknowledges that whatever guidelines they publish will likely need constant updating as the technology continues to advance.

“Students are using it now. They’re just using it without our assistance, they’re using it without our controls. And we’re providing those guidelines to maximize the advantage in our classrooms,” Legg said.

To stay current with all the advances in AI, Legg said the district has a standing work group dedicated to addressing concerns around the policy and shaping it for years to come.