For our second and final meeting, the Artificial Intelligence and Digital Literacy Supports Development Team met on Zoom this time to discuss our how our lessons went and our next steps. Nick Poeschek shared that summary guides regarding online learning, adult education, and inclusive education were coming soon, and that field reviews for BC learning pathways were still open.

With regards to AI in Education Sector Supports (the greater project this team was a part of), the guides were going through approvals with feedback being integrated into the documents, and or teaching/learning stories that we were required to submit would be integrated. My contributions to the group will be published at a later date.

As a group, our successes included: high student engagement, strong discussions, hitting all of the intended targets for learning, and a large student understanding of the digital literacy components of AI use. Some of our group challenges were less about students, but rather the district, administrative, and parent side of things. A few of my colleagues experienced blowback from their principals on using AI in the classroom, required an ethics review and parental consent to even try their lessons out. One teacher ended up having an in-depth conversation with a student who admitted to academic dishonesty through the use of AI.

The meeting was brief, but we are anticipating that all of our teaching and learning stories will be published on the Ministry of Education’s website as exemplars as to how AI education is being taught throughout the province.

This experience was so enriching and I am glad that I participated. Getting to pull back the curtain and learn more about how the Ministry operates and works with teachers was eye-opening. My favorite part was the small group talks with teachers all over the province. I loved being able to meet my peers, learn how they go about these topics, and how they engage learners. I wish I had more opportunities to meet and talk with them all. We were all like-minded individuals who had a passion for educational technology, so there was never a dull moment speaking to them all. If there was an opportunity to work alongside the Ministry, BCTF, and fellow teachers in an area I was interested in, I would volunteer in a heartbeat.

In the aftermath of such a positive opportunity, Carol Todd reached out to me to talk about how it all went. As my district’s coordinator for digital literacy, she is always looking for new ways to stay on top of the learning curve and keep teachers informed. She added me to a provincial Whatsapp group that is dedicated to learning all they can about AI – it’s innovations, the ways it’s being exploited, and how teachers can learn and engage more. Being in this new group continues to stretch my thinking and give me new insights. I am eager to continually learn more alongside a greater teacher community, and learn from their experiences.

*Update* The Ministry has recently published a “Digital Literacy and the use of AI in education: supports for British Columbia Schools” document that is continuing to be updated that provides the Ministry’s stance on AI use in schools and the resource materials educators, students, and families must know if they are to use AI in their learning. More updates will come as the documents are rolled out for public use.