As Vermont students complete their midyear exams, school districts continue to reevaluate and develop guidelines regarding artificial intelligence inside and outside of the classroom. Five students from South Burlington and Stowe tell NBC5 they sometimes or never use AI in their learning. “Out of the four years I was at Stowe High School, this was the year I barely used technology, honestly,” said Stowe High School student Lily Steele. Steele and his classmates, freshman India Freund and junior Charlie Zimmerman, say they use AI to create practice tests or study guides. “It’s kind of taking the work out and putting in the effort and making you think more,” Freund said. But they all agree: There’s a fine line between using AI in an acceptable way that helps them learn and using it to cheat. Jumana Msour, a sophomore at South Burlington, said she chose not to use technology for environmental and personal reasons. “It can lead to cognitive decline if used inappropriately,” Msour said. The Essex Westford School District is one of the few in the state that has hired three digital learning leaders to teach teachers how to best implement AI in their classes. “It’s one of the few things that’s happened in a very long time that really shakes up the way you teach and assess,” said Caty Wolfe, head of digital learning at Essex Westford. She says the district works to get all of its teachers on the same page. At Stowe High School, Academic Integrity Coordinator Roger Murphy says he encourages teachers to collect multiple handwritten samples of students’ writing to reference the style and structure of their writing if there is ever a question about a student’s use of AI. “Most students, when you tell them, ‘That doesn’t sound like your job.’ Nine out of 10, they say it wasn’t,” said Murphy, who also teaches English and social studies. Back at Stowe High School, Steele says not all students are looking for a shortcut, but rather a boost in their education.
As Vermont students complete their midyear exams, school districts continue to reevaluate and develop guidelines regarding artificial intelligence inside and outside of the classroom.
Five students from South Burlington and Stowe tell NBC5 they sometimes or never use AI in their learning.
“Out of the four years I was at Stowe High School, this was the year I barely used technology, honestly,” said Stowe High School student Lily Steele.
Steele and his classmates, freshman India Freund and junior Charlie Zimmerman, say they use AI to create practice tests or study guides.
“It’s kind of taking the work out and putting in the effort and making you think more,” Freund said.
But they all agree: There is a fine line between using AI in an acceptable way that helps them learn and using it to cheat. Jumana Msour, a sophomore at South Burlington, said she chose not to use technology for environmental and personal reasons. “It can lead to cognitive decline if used incorrectly,” Msour said.
The Essex Westford School District is one of the few in the state that has hired three digital learning leaders to teach teachers how to best implement AI in their classes.
“It’s one of the few things that’s happened in a very long time that really shakes up the way you teach and assess,” said Caty Wolfe, head of digital learning at Essex Westford. She says the district works to get all of its teachers on the same page.
At Stowe High School, Academic Integrity Coordinator Roger Murphy says he encourages teachers to collect multiple handwritten samples of students’ writing to reference the style and structure of their writing if there is ever a question about a student’s use of AI.
“Most students, when you tell them, ‘That doesn’t sound like your job.’ Nine out of 10 people say that wasn’t the case,” said Murphy, who also teaches English and social studies.
Back at Stowe High School, Steele says not all students are looking for a shortcut, but rather a boost in their education.
