The UK government will equip teachers with AI tools to help with “lesson marking and planning”.
The project, which has received £4 million in government investment, will see government documents such as curriculum guidelines, lesson plans and anonymised student assessments fed into an AI model which will spit out “accurate, high-quality content”.
This is not a phrase typically associated with an AI assistant: when you ask Microsoft's Copilot, “How many times does the letter 'r' appear in raspberry?”, for example, it responds with, “The word raspberry has the letter 'r' two times.”
Also attached is a photo of strawberries.
What could possibly go wrong?
To be fair to Microsoft, OpenAI's ChatGPT also thought that “the letter 'r' appears twice in raspberry,” while Google's Gemini said, “The letter 'r' appears four times in the word 'raspberry.'”
I sincerely hope this issue gets resolved before teachers start using AI assistants to grade homework.
According to the UK Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSIT), the government aims to reduce the administrative burden on teachers. UK Science Minister Peter Kyle said: “This is the first of many projects that will transform how the public sector looks at and uses data. We will use the information we hold in a safe and responsible way, reducing waiting lists, slashing backlogs and improving outcomes for citizens across the country.”
Of the £4 million funding, £3 million will go towards the content store itself – made up of educational standards, guidelines and lesson plans – and £1 million towards AI companies that will generate “the best ideas to put data to work to ease teachers' workload”.
While the move to reduce the burden on teachers has been widely welcomed, the use of AI has been met with cautious reactions.
The UK's National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) welcomed the proposals for ways to ease the burden on school staff, but said it was “keenly aware that AI cannot replace teachers who have the experience and understanding to deliver the best learning outcomes for children”.
“We look forward to engaging and working with the government as soon as possible to explore potential uses for AI, identify any concerns or limitations, and ensure that the adoption of AI in education is thoughtful, responsible, and ultimately enhances the learning experience for everyone.”
Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the national teaching union, said: “Solving the teacher retention crisis clearly requires prioritising workload reduction, but we also need a serious and holistic approach to both the issues of skills and workload reduction.”
“This means engaging with experts appropriately to fully understand the implications of AI on education, including not only the opportunities it brings but also the limitations, risks and ethical concerns it poses.”
“Investment should be directed towards strengthening and incorporating the voice of teachers and schools to ensure that AI tools and products truly reflect the priorities of schools and colleges, and are tested and evaluated by them.”
The Register has asked the government how the anonymity of the training set will be protected and how it will avoid scenarios where an AI is grading homework assignments created by an AI from an AI-created lesson plan, but has not yet received a response.
