Technology a tool, not a teacher: Educators urge vigilance on children's AI use

Human First, Tech Forward: Treat AI as a Tool, Not the Teacher

At the STTAR Global Education Conference in New Delhi, education leaders drew a clear line: AI can support learning, but it should never replace the human judgment of teachers and parents. The call to action was simple-use technology with intention, especially for children.

Speakers stressed that schools are the first and most critical arena for building awareness about responsible AI use. The goal is to amplify learning without outsourcing thinking.

Key messages from the conference

• Biswajit Saha (CBSE) cautioned that when technology becomes the master, it threatens human agency. Use it, but with clear boundaries-and with parents who truly know their children.
• TG Sitharam (AICTE) projected a steep rise in higher education participation, from 11% a few years ago to a possible 50% by 2035-making digital literacy and ethics non-negotiable.
• Shishir Jaipuria noted that attention spans are dropping. Embrace technology, but make it more human-reduce friction, increase focus, and keep relationships central.
• Sanjay Jain (Google for Education India) said the real question is what and how we learn with AI. Used well, AI helps identify students who are behind and supports them to catch up.
• Vinod Malhotra (STTAR) summed it up: technology is a great helper-not the master.

What this means for school leaders and teachers

AI can accelerate routine tasks and surface insights, but pedagogy, values, and context must stay human-led. The work is to set guardrails, upskill staff, and use AI where it adds real value.

Practical guardrails for AI use in K-12

• Set grade-wise AI norms: what's allowed, supervised, or off-limits. Publish these for students and parents.
• Require AI-use disclosure on student work. Teach source citing, fact-checking, and bias awareness.
• Use AI for formative assessment and practice, but keep teacher oversight on feedback and final judgments.
• Protect privacy: minimize data sharing, restrict logins to approved tools, and obtain parental consent.
• Preserve assessment integrity: design tasks that require process evidence (notes, drafts), include oral checks, and vary contexts.

Build AI literacy without losing core human skills

• Schedule focused work blocks without screens to rebuild attention and memory.
• Blend AI with reflection: AI-supported draft + student explanation of choices and improvements.
• Favor projects that combine hands-on work (labs, art, field tasks) with digital analysis.
• Teach critical thinking, media literacy, and ethics explicitly-don't assume they develop on their own.

Teacher development and parent partnership

• Run monthly micro-PD on safe classroom uses of AI, prompt review routines, and assessment design; share short teacher demos.
• Host parent sessions on AI basics, screen-time boundaries, and home-use expectations aligned with school policy.
• Create a simple channel to report misuse, with clear consequences and restorative steps.
• Review AI impact each term and adjust policies based on evidence, not hype.

For structured upskilling, explore AI courses by job role to support teacher capability building.

Metrics that matter

• Learning progress: which students moved from below grade level to on track with targeted AI-supported interventions.
• Assessment integrity: incidents of misuse, turnaround time, and recurrence rates after interventions.
• Student well-being: self-reported focus, stress, and sleep, paired with observed classroom engagement.
• Teacher workload: time saved on feedback or planning vs. gains in student outcomes.

The takeaway is clear: use AI to extend the reach of good teaching, not to replace it. Keep human judgment at the center, make the rules explicit, and let technology do what it does best-assist.