Dr Theocaris Kyriaku, Associate Professor of AI at York St John University, explained that government guidelines for the use of AI in schools were only created a year ago.
The Department for Education has made clear that teachers can use AI, but professional judgment is required to ensure what is produced is accurate and appropriate.
A DfE spokesperson said: “The ultimate responsibility always lies with them and their schools.”
“We’re still in the early stages of implementation, so there’s interest and experimentation from schools, and that number is growing rapidly,” Kyriaku said.
“However, adoption and usage is currently patchy and uneven, with use only for low-risk tasks such as creating feedback, quizzes, and resource creation.”
According to the professor, AI’s consistent grading and rapid feedback not only benefits students, but could also be a game-changer for teachers.
“It’s widely accepted that teachers are overworked. (Teachers work) about 50 hours plus a week, and that’s unsustainable,” he said.
“It’s time at the end of the day. This saves time creating extensive, detailed and personalized feedback for students.”
However, he cautioned that completely outsourcing grading would not be an effective use of AI because it would take away the skills of teachers.
“Apart from how students perceive being marked by AI, I observed some conversations on various forums and found that there is distrust and aversion towards being marked by AI,” Kyriaku added.
“If parents don’t understand how these things are used, it can lead to mistrust.”
