A subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on Education and Workforce is talking AI and how it should be used in the classroom.
Congressman Tim Walberg, chair of the committee, was on hand Tuesday for a meeting of the Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee as it heard from experts in the education and technology fields. He said it’s clear AI could be a benefit to teachers and students.
“We’re taking AI seriously,” Walberg said. “Whether we understand it or not, we need to know about it and know best practices.”
Walberg said teachers are often overworked, and AI could save them a lot of time. However, he said they need training to be well prepared for the use of AI without it being just another box that gets ticked on a to-do list.
Subcommittee Chair Kevin Kiley, a Republican, said teachers who use AI estimate the technology saves them about six hours per week. However, he said student use of AI needs to be ethical and productive.
“Students aren’t just using these tools to get homework done faster, by the way,” Kiley said. “Excessive or irresponsible use of AI as a crutch threatens to replace critical thinking, especially when used outside of teacher supervision.”
Democrat Suzanne Bonamici said with many benefits that AI could bring to the table, there must be guardrails. She also took shots at the Trump administration, saying its dismantling of the Department of Education comes at a time when the department could be helpful to schools navigating this new tech.
“Without the department’s leadership, or without the department, many schools, particularly in less affluent areas, will go without new technologies,” Bonamici said. “This will likely further widen achievement gaps and leave more children behind.”
Representative Kiley said members of the subcommittee hoped to hear from experts about how teachers can be equipped with the tools they need, what support they need from their leadership, and how teachers can best work with students in an era when seemingly everyone is experimenting with AI.
Kiley added added the technology’s “potential must be analyzed soberly, with a clear view of the potential risks.”