Let’s Get Ready for AI in Education

As part of the Let's Get Ready! Educating All Americans for Success initiative, NGA Chair Colorado Governor Jared Polis is hosting a series of regional convenings to support Governors as they work to better evaluate outcomes from state investments in education and help drive improved outcomes for learners at all stages of their education journey.

The first convening was held in Denver last month and featured a conversation with Dr. Steven Levitt on Educating for Life, a panel discussion with Governors and education experts on how to better Educate for Opportunity and a conversation on how to Better Measure Success. The conversation continued this week at a regional convening held in Las Vegas, co-hosted by Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo.

Governor Polis and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon opened the meeting with remarks on efforts in their states; then, they led a discussion with Sal Kahn, CEO and founder of Khan Academy, and a leader in education innovation. Governor Polis emphasized the dual focus of the initiative in setting up students for individual success while developing the talent needed to foster economic growth. The Governor noted a key aspect of this is shrinking the gap between proficiency in basic skills and career readiness by rethinking education metrics and systems to better align with career outcomes. As an example, Governor Polis discussed a recent visit to Bollman Tech in Thornton, Colorado, for a look at their FutureForward program, which is providing innovative career technical education that offers students access to cybersecurity certification and expands their career opportunities post-graduation.

Governor Gordon shared his personal journey through the education system as a parent, discussing the need to rethink education standards and accountability. He highlighted Wyoming's Reimagining and Innovating the Delivery of Education program, which is working to customize education based on community needs and student interests. Governor Gordon stressed the need to make education more student-centered and mastery-focused.

"I think what's been fascinating about what Governor Polis has done is really taken this moment of time that we have that is remarkable in our history, where there are incredible opportunities. And if we avoid the strictures of where we've been, and start thinking about the innovation that we can have and meeting students where they are, we have an incredible opportunity to move forward and really redress many of the issues that I think have held us back."

Sal Khan shared his perspective on the role of AI in education, particularly through Khan Academy's Khanmigo, which uses AI to enhance student engagement and learning. This AI-powered online tutor was recently the subject of a 60 Minutes piece, available to watch here. Khan provided background on his inspiration for starting Khan Academy, highlighted the challenges faced by students with learning gaps, the importance of personalized learning and the possibilities offered by technology in providing on-demand education.

Khan stressed that AI isn't just a tutor; it also has potential as a teaching assistant by supporting teachers and reducing administrative burdens. He emphasized the importance of teacher engagement and the ability of technology tools to enhance rather than replace human interaction by giving teachers tools to provide personalized learning and feedback to students more easily. This will not only support student progress, but help address teacher attrition as well, by reducing burn-out.

Other key points on the benefits of technological innovation in education include:

• Offering rapid and flexible learning that responds to a student's abilities and progress.
• Shrinking opportunity gaps through virtual tutoring.
• Raising the floor of education in rural areas by increasing access to high-quality programs.
• Increase student motivation through an incentive structure that rewards competence.
• Providing assessments that measure a broader range of skills and abilities, so that we can evolve the educational and employment systems to value competencies, not seat time.

You can watch the full conversation below, but the best summary was provided by Khan in response to a question from Governor Polis on the best case and worst case for education in ten years.

"The worst case is cheating is rampant…and people don't know how to solve it…You could have a lot of debacles of people trying to adopt AI and it just did nothing, and it was a lot of money wasted. That's one of my biggest fears - just false starts or bad starts. Because then people will just throw out the baby with the bath water.

"I think the best scenario is that in 2034 if you are a teacher, you can spend 90% of your time on student-facing tasks. We are moved to a more of a competency-based system. This is where AI might play a very interesting role. I tend to defend tests like the SAT and the AP exams; I think they are good at measuring a certain dimension of who you are, but I think everyone agrees that they don't measure all of who you are and all of what you're capable of. If we are careful about how we use AI…we could have an assessment that doesn't just measure reading comprehension or math, it could measure creativity. AI can give you feedback on your public speaking, on your salesmanship, which are skills that are nowhere in your college transcript or nowhere in your SAT score. [If we get AI right], teachers' lives are easier, kids are more engaged with more engaging competency-based lessons [with] very clear paths - that don't necessarily [require] a $400,000 college education - that are better at signaling what you're capable of and get you a great career."