Last fall, my children’s school district (in a northern suburb of San Francisco, in a community connected to big tech companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google) put out a call to parents.
The school district wanted us to join their Artificial Intelligence (AI) Task Force. The goal was to draft a vision statement for AI and develop a framework for AI in the classroom. I registered without hesitation.
why? Because my kid would come home, take a photo of his math homework, input it into an AI engine, and write one prompt like this: solve.
He is known for taking shortcuts and this bothered me. As someone who follows the rules, I thought he might have problems using AI for his homework.
And an even bigger question made me pause. Do I want him to utilize AI in this way?
Many parents also find themselves troubled by AI.
My parenting generation had to navigate rules around screen time, cell phones, and social media without a clear roadmap.
It was daunting to have to contend with another emerging technology that felt even more powerful. I started worrying about how AI would affect the developing mind.
As I talked about my concerns with other parents, I realized I was not alone. While many saw AI literacy as an important skill, they were also concerned about AI’s impact on creativity, attachment, critical thinking, and children’s ability to solve problems on their own.
I joined my son’s AI task force
When I joined the Reed Union School District (RUSD) AI Task Force last November with a group of teachers, administrators, and parent volunteers, I was immediately struck by the district’s stance.
This was not a debate about whether or not to use AI in the classroom. It was a conversation about how to do it thoughtfully. The general attitude was that this new technology, if used responsibly, could improve learning outcomes and prepare students for a future where technology skills are increasingly valued.
Over three meetings, we helped develop an AI integration vision statement, safety and ethics review, and AI literacy and student use policy.
The more I listened, the more my way of thinking changed. While AI holds promise, there are also real risks to consider. Both things are true.
The author’s son relies on AI for math problems. Provided by Amanda Hislop
I joined the AI Task Force with a protective instinct, but I’ve come to understand that the job I signed up for was to find a middle ground with this technology.
We have introduced a new convenient system
Many students don’t know what the rules are when using AI in academic work, and it’s much trickier than you think.
I’ve heard it directly from my own children. Using AI might give you an A grade. Or if you use AI, you risk being judged by your friends or punished by your teacher. Some children are willing to take the risk and try these tools. Others don’t touch it at all. As a parent who has seen it from both sides, I can see that neither reaction is beneficial to them.
RUSD guides students, teachers, and parents out of this gray area. The district is rolling out a traffic light model that specifies when and how AI is allowed to be used in academics.
For students in grades K-5, a red light means no AI, a yellow light allows an AI as a tutor or support, and a green light means an AI as a partner.
For middle school students, models will be on a 0-4 scale with color bands. Here, 0 indicates no AI is involved, and 4 indicates tasks where the AI generates work and students must critique and fact-check it.
The traffic light system and numerical framework will be featured in assignment headers, classroom posters, and family communications. This creates a clear signal and helps students understand the rules and the reasoning behind them.
This will also help you know what to strengthen at home.
I’m still thinking about it while doing it.
What I want for my son is not a ban on AI. I want him to use this book as a learning partner. Be curious, be creative, ask questions, read carefully, and push back on the answer if you don’t think it’s correct.
I don’t want him to sit down, press copy and paste, and walk away. That’s the difference between students who use AI to outsource their thinking and those who learn to augment their own thinking.
RUSD is trying to build the latter. And so am I.