Use of AI at Independent Schools

Independent K–12 schools across the Washington, D.C., region are navigating artificial intelligence from varied perspectives, balancing technology adoption with issues of access, resources, learning, and ethics. Independent school AI approaches range from proactive exploration to cautious containment. Some independent schools are aggressively integrating AI into many aspects of learning and operations, while others are taking a more reserved or restrictive approach and advancing AI adoption deliberately. As AI continues to develop, it will become an increasingly important factor in school choice for parents.

The Association of Independent Schools of Greater Washington (AISGW) has developed an AI framework for DMV independent schools that emphasizes artificial intelligence integration as a strategic leadership priority requiring a unified, school-wide approach rather than treating AI as an isolated IT issue. This shift calls for heads of school, financial officers, and academic leaders to work together to treat AI adoption as a fundamental operational evolution. AISGW maintains that AI adoption should be anchored in a school's core mission and used to strengthen human judgment, with technology integration treated as a continuous, adaptive design process. The framework is designed to allow AI to redefine learning, empower educators, and improve schools' administrative operations. AISGW's framework has contributed to ongoing professional development for educators on AI, as well as the creation of school AI working groups and board of trustee oversight.

The driving focus of the discussion is on generative AI, AI detectors, and AI teaching assistants. These tools include ChatGPT, ChatZero, Grammarly, Google Gemini, and others. They can be used to create new text, images, or ideas from simple prompts. More directly stated, students use AI to complete schoolwork, while teachers use AI to instruct students and evaluate student work. Concerns about cheating and shortcuts raise legitimate fears, but they can also limit appreciation of the broader impact and potential of AI in independent education.

A Stanford University study suggests that student cheating has not necessarily increased because of AI, but that the methods students use may have changed. A Walton Family Foundation study reported that AI can improve teacher effectiveness by saving planning time, creating student-tailored learning materials, and providing data-driven insights into student progress. Assumptions and beliefs about AI are still evolving. At independent schools, these assumptions and beliefs are shaped by the structures, people, learning cultures, and missions of each institution.

The Black Student Fund will continue its year-long discussion of AI, with a focus on subjects that are important to parents at independent schools, including academics; critical thinking and skill atrophy; institutional policy and transparency; data privacy; student profiling; and automated learning versus human instruction.

Stay tuned.

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