Now, since K-12 schools had the summer to craft and implement policies, teachers are having a very different experience with generative AI as compared to the 2022-23 school year. CDT’s research reveals that there have been massive changes in teacher and student usage, policy-setting, training, and teacher engagement on generative AI. For example, 80% of teachers report receiving formal training about generative AI use policies and procedures and 72% of teachers say that their school has asked them for input about policies and procedures regarding student use of generative AI.
But teachers report that generative AI’s biggest risks remain largely unaddressed – particularly risks that stem from:
- Managing responsible student use — only 28% of teachers say that they have received guidance about how to respond if they suspect a student has used generative AI in ways that are not allowed, such as plagiarism;
- Teachers becoming heavily reliant on ineffective AI content detection tools — 68% of teachers report using an AI content detection tool regularly, despite known efficacy issues that disproportionately affect students who are protected by civil rights laws;
- Increased student disciplinary action — 64% of teachers say that student(s) at their school have gotten in trouble or experienced negative consequences for using or being accused of using generative AI on a school assignment, a 16 percentage-point increase from last school year, and;
- Persistent distrust in students’ academic integrity — 52% of teachers agree that generative AI has made them more distrustful of whether their students' work is actually theirs.
This round of survey research builds off of CDT’s nationally representative survey of teachers, parents, and students conducted during the last school year (2022-23), which revealed that schools were struggling to provide policies and procedures around the responsible use of generative AI – leaving teachers, parents, and students with a lack of clarity and guidance. And, even despite schools’ lack of official policies, students were experiencing disciplinary action for generative AI use.
By continuing to not address these key concerns about a technology that is not going away, schools run the risk of negatively affecting students’ educational experiences, privacy, and civil rights.
