DUBLIN UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT

“ There are two staunch groups with educators who have taken the technology and embraced AI capabilities and then you have other teachers who feel it’ s not allowing students to personally grow and develop – using AI for plagiarism is an obvious example of this.”

Despite concerns over misuse, David emphasises the technology offers unprecedented benefits for personalised learning when applied thoughtfully.

“ I think there are some things that AI can be amazingly effective at. When used for math development, AI can see where the student is succeeding and can start changing and adapting the questions until the student has met the standard and moves on. Or for another student who may be struggling, AI can move backwards and make those changes to help the student understand the topic better.”

To use AI in the most appropriate way in the classroom, Dublin Unified has worked with staff, parents and students to set up a tier programme where level one classrooms use AI for everything and level five omits AI – in these situations, students are required to use pen and paper.

“ Level three might be using AI for brainstorming but not for assessments,” David explains.“ It allows teachers to say‘ In my classroom, this is what we’ re going to do’, or‘ For this assignment, this is our restriction’.” Teachers have also met in cohorts to discuss the best use of AI for their subject areas. For example, fifthgrade English teachers have established the expected level of AI engagement for student assignments, determining when tools can be used for brainstorming versus where original writing is strictly required.

As expected, some subjects will use AI in the classroom more than others.

“ Our computer programming courses are using AI throughout the curriculum,” David says.“ I’ ve seen some exciting things developed by students using Claude and so this subject is in level one of our programme.

“ Humanities courses remain low-AI to prevent plagiarism and preserve original writing. But tools like Gemini Notebook bridge this gap responsibly: students do the research and feed the AI their own vetted sources. From there, teachers can verify the input while students use the tool to generate custom study guides, practice questions aligned with state standards.” To support this balanced approach, Dublin Unified relies heavily on Google Gemini, which is cleared for all age groups, covered by their Google licensing and allows administrators to monitor usage for safety.

In contrast, tools with strict age limits – such as ChatGPT – are blocked districtwide to avoid managing widespread parental consent. However, the policy remains adaptable: if a teacher obtains parent permission slips for a specific class, IT can selectively unblock tools like ChatGPT, Claude or Lovable for tailored instructional use. dublinusd. org 13