10. AI tools in the classroom¶
AI assistants (chatbots, code assistants) are in students' phones whether schools allow them or not. The aim is not to ban them but to teach students to use them in ways that build their skills rather than replace them.
The policy in four lines¶
- Explain, don't answer. Ask for explanations, hints, feedback and practice questions — not finished answers.
- Disclose. One line in every piece of work: "AI help used for: ___" (or "none").
- Own it. Every project has an oral check; if you can't explain it, it isn't yours yet.
- Verify and protect. Check every fact and number against the source; never paste personal data about real people.
The full policy and a printable prompt card are in docs/pedagogy/ai-use-policy.md.
Good and bad uses¶
| Helps learning | Replaces learning |
|---|---|
"Explain groupby with an example about districts." |
"Write my Unit 5 project." |
"My code gives KeyError: 'Literacy'. Give me a hint, not the fix." |
"Fix my code." (without reading the explanation) |
| "Give me five practice questions on percentage points." | "Answer these exercises." |
| "Check my interpretation of this graph: … What am I missing?" | "Write my conclusion." |
| "Suggest three possible confounders for this relationship." | "Make up some data for my survey." |
Designing tasks that AI can't simply do¶
- Use local, current data students collected themselves (a class survey, a weather diary).
- Ask for decisions with reasons ("why did you choose the median?") and reflections.
- Require process evidence: the plan card, cleaning log, commit history (Grade 11), drafts.
- Use the oral check.
Teachers using AI¶
AI tools can help teachers too: generating extra practice questions, alternative explanations, translations to check, rubric descriptors, examples set in your district. Apply the same rules: verify every fact and number (AI tools invent statistics about Nepal), protect student data, and adapt to your class.
Talking to students about AI¶
Grade 10 Unit 6 teaches how AI learns, hallucination, bias, deepfakes and responsible use. Revisit these ideas whenever students use AI: "How would you check that?", "Who might this tool work worse for?"