New York City Restricts Student-Facing AI in Primary Schools

New York — New York City officials have introduced a policy restricting student-facing Artificial Intelligence (AI) in public schools from preschool through Grade 8, affecting nearly 600 000 pupils in the New York City Public School system.

The policy follows pressure from parents and teachers, which resulted in the city’s Education Department delaying the release of its comprehensive AI policy by two months.

Education Chancellor, Kamar Samuels, acknowledged in May that earlier guidance on artificial intelligence had “missed the mark” on safeguards for students.

Under the new policy, laptops will be prohibited in classrooms for pupils from preschool through Grade 2.

For students in Grades 3 through 5, the policy recommends no more than 30 minutes of device use, while pupils in Grades 6 through 8 are recommended to have no more than 45 minutes of device use.

High school students will have restricted access to artificial intelligence, with its use permitted for “AI literacy” and “career readiness”, as well as through five approved pilot programmes at selected schools.

The policy provides exceptions for assistive technology, reading and mathematics assessments, and instructional programmes such as coding and robotics.

City officials are also reportedly establishing a task force to oversee implementation of the policy across the public school system.

The measures set different levels of access to digital devices and artificial intelligence according to pupils’ age and educational level.

While younger pupils will face tighter restrictions on classroom device use, older students will retain limited access to AI for specified educational purposes.

Source: GroundNews