NYC Chancellor Kamar Samuels on AI guardrails: 'We missed the mark'

New York City officials released draft guidance in March on how schools should use artificial intelligence, prompting strong criticism from parents and educators who said officials did not do enough to address threats to education. Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels acknowledged that the Education Department did not understand the depth of opposition and pledged a more aggressive approach in the final guidance, especially for children ages three to five. Samuels said the department missed the mark in communicating and in demonstrating trust to protect young people. He described AI as the most invasive technology seen and said the department is closely examining restrictions for the youngest students. Officials had planned a June final version, but the timeline was not confirmed.

"“We missed the mark, and we didn't communicate in a way that really showed our community that we understood where we were ... and that we were worthy of being trusted to protect young people,” Samuels said at an event Tuesday night at Bank Street College of Education in Manhattan, according to a partial recording shared with Chalkbeat."

"“AI 'is the most invasive technology that we've seen,' Samuels said. While city officials believe older students will need some exposure to AI, the Education Department is 'looking very closely' at restricting its use in school for the youngest students, particularly those ages three to five, the chancellor said."

"Across the five boroughs, parents have flooded public forums to rail against the city's draft AI guidance, which uses a traffic light framework to delineate the risk levels of different uses of AI in the classroom, mainly by educators. Student"

Read at Chalkbeat