Dallas ISD Encourages Responsible Use of AI

Dallas ISD is embracing artificial intelligence in its schools rather than blocking it from student use.

District chief technology officer Sean Brinkman says this will help students learn to use AI responsibly as it becomes increasingly relevant across society.

“It’s going to be in everything that our students use in the future,” Brinkman said. “It’s going to be in their phones. It’s going to be in their web browsers. It’s going to be in their learning applications. All of the different companies are adopting this technology.”

The district has also created ethical use guidelines, which it plans to incorporate this semester, for students to understand how to be “conscious consumers” of AI.

“We can’t block it; it’s kind of like the genie’s out of the bottle,” Brinkman said. “This is going to be everywhere. … They’re going to hear about it in the news and their other social media feeds, but what we can do is create responsible digital citizens.”

The ethical use guidelines challenge students to respect privacy and consent, avoid discrimination and bias, use critical thinking and validation, practice responsible use and online etiquette, have digital well-being, and report issues and misuse.

The district also plans to educate teachers on using AI in the classroom to aid learning and prevent plagiarism. Some tools can help identify when a student has used it for academic dishonesty, which the district is teaching faculty to utilize.

“It’s really an awareness issue, coupled with some tools that can help teachers identify those instances of plagiarism,” Brinkman said.

Brinkman said he doesn’t know where AI will be in five years but is confident it will be prominent.

“There’s going to be a lot more of it,” he said. “It’s going to be everywhere, and we need to make sure that our kids are prepared to use it. Otherwise, they’re going to be left behind.”