Hadley and Granby Public Schools will help develop and pilot the first artificial intelligence curriculum for middle and high school students that teaches foundational concepts and societal implications around the burgeoning technology.
“It’s really exciting,” Hadley Superintendent Annie McKenzie said. “We want all of our students to have literacy in generative AI applications, how they work, how students can leverage generative AI for decision-making in various industries, and we want them to have AI literacy so it can help them in civic engagement and post-secondary success in careers.”
Education nonprofit Project Lead The Way has partnered with the Massachusetts STEM Advisory Council and the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to bring lessons about AI to over 1,600 students in 30 Massachusetts districts. The goal is to help develop “the workforce of the future” by equipping youth with the necessary knowledge to use AI in their careers, said David Dimmett, President and CEO of Project Lead The Way,.
“We have to imagine what does the world look like, not just in another year or five years, but what does 20 years of AI development look like?” he said. “What do we want that world to look like? We have a chance to shape it now.”
Other western Massachusetts districts that will adopt this curriculum are Springfield Public Schools, West Springfield Public Schools, Gill-Montague Regional School District and Pittsfield Public Schools.
“Massachusetts is a leader in innovation education because we know that our students are the next generation of problem-solvers and changemakers,” said Gov. Maura Healey in a statement. “This pilot will give them hands-on opportunities to explore AI, strengthen their creativity and critical thinking, and prepare them to lead our state into the future.”
The project-based curriculum will cover the history of artificial intelligence, development and testing of different AI models, the strengths and weaknesses of AI predictive algorithms, ethical concerns and environmental impacts of artificial intelligence. For instance, Dimmett said lessons will discuss the ethics around self-driving cars, large energy profiles required to upkeep data centers and even presenting simple voice assistants.
“I think that will be eye-opening for many students and will lead to other opportunities,” Dimmett said. “Maybe they are not interested in AI at the deepest level. Maybe they don’t want to learn how to build large language models or pursue a career in machine learning, but they might want to help solve the problem around energy and think about how that could be impactful in their community.”
The 30 districts will add pilot lessons or the full course into their existing PLTW curriculum pathways. Hopkins Academy teaches computer science, engineering and biomedical engineering pathways. Granby Junior Senior High School teaches automation and robotics, as well as design and modeling.
“We have three teachers that will be implementing that curriculum, and they will implement specific lessons based on the course they are teaching,” McKenzie said. “One, for example, teaches computer science principles and essentials, so that teacher would look at the curriculum and determining which lessons fit in existing curriculum.”
Teachers at Hopkins Academy and Granby Junior Senior High School attended a training with 43 other educators to help shape the curriculum over summer, and now they will bring the pilot lessons in their classrooms.
“I like that this is giving students and teachers the opportunity to test out the curriculum and give our feedback. I really like that that we get to contribute to this new technology,” Granby Superintendent Mary Jane Rickson said. “We’re a small district, but I want us to have an active role in creating opportunities for Granby and districts across the state.”