The AI Innovator Cohort
In a remarkably short span of time, artificial intelligence (AI) catapulted to the forefront of technological advancements, demanding our attention and prompting critical exploration. The Washington State AI Innovator Cohort is a groundbreaking initiative that aims to bring awareness and effective implementation of AI technology in the classroom. By partnering with Microsoft Philanthropies, the Northwest Council for Computer Education, NCCE, is empowering educational communities to harness the power of AI for social impact and future success. By creating a statewide AI Innovators Cohort, participants experience AI with hands-on training, mentorship, and resources to integrate AI into their educational practice.
Importance
Schools face unique challenges in leveraging AI due to limited resources and expertise. However, AI has the potential to revolutionize how we learn, communicate, problem solve and respond to societal challenges. The AI Innovator Cohort addresses this gap by offering practical guidance, fostering collaboration, and promoting AI literacy among educational communities.
Developing a Professional Learning Experience
As we approached this learning we knew this would require a team effort with Washington’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction helping to define the vision, participate in timeline planning sessions, join informational meetings with educational leaders, create a first draft of educator professional learning materials, share feedback, and help meet unique needs with rewrites and revisions. Washington state provided the core focus with their Human Center Guidance for K-12 Public Schools. After visioning meetings and timeline agreements, NCCE professional learning specialists actively sought current research and knowledge-building activities used by educational leaders across the state. They then developed modules spanning a range of topics, from foundational AI understanding to practical implementation in educational settings and provided avenues for knowledge sharing among colleagues.
Connecting a Community of Learners
Educator cohort members then participated in a two day train the trainer event hosted at the Microsoft Offices in Redmond focusing on the delivery and collaboration of materials. During the sessions participants experienced activities first hand, engaged in thoughtful discussions, practiced prompting, explored AI resources, and gave specific feedback for material revisions and rewrites. Concerns raised around bias, equity, and privacy within AI use and the essential need for AI literacy were implemented into the materials. Throughout the iterative process Washington Association of Educational Service Districts (AESD) Leaders, educators and Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) leaders contributed feedback and key guidance including expectations, accessibility and materials needed for ease of delivery. Ongoing collaboration resulted in activity guides and additional scaffolds to ensure understanding and fidelity.
Engaging, Refining, and Expanding
Recognizing the dynamic nature of AI, a cohort model was used to foster ongoing learning, guidance, and community. Supportive community virtual cohort meetings led by Dr. John Pauls and Maria Turner worked to encourage the cohort members to share and grow together as AI technology and usage continues to advance. The group met monthly for 6 months following the trainer session to share experiences and areas of potential growth to seek peer guidance. In addition, cohort members were able to have a time on these calls to learn from leading educational experts who shared new learnings, hot topics and practical classroom lessons learned. Some of these leaders included Daniel Fitzpatrick, Matt Miller, Tyler Rablin and Tim Needles.
”When we consider how this new and evolving technology is impacting education, we have to center educators in the conversation. How does this tool allow us to create more personable, relevant, accessible, and engaging content and opportunities for our learners? How do we prepare learners for an AI-infused future? Being able to come together as a community and navigate these questions together has been a truly unique and empowering experience for everyone involved” – John Pauls, Instructional Designer and eLearning Expert
Sharing the Learning
Cohort members have been actively sharing consistent messaging and understanding of AI by implementing the trainer materials to spread AI literacy throughout the state. Cohort leaders shared this work nationally at the 2024 ISTE Conference in Denver, Colorado with Microsoft. AESD Educational Leaders will host a fall Artificial Intelligence Innovation Summit for more than 90 school districts as well as share key learnings and AI best practices at the annual NCCE25 Conference in Seattle. The modules are also being packaged as an asynchronous option for even wider availability statewide.
What’s Next?
Microsoft Philanthropies and NCCE will be working to help other states wanting to create or expand AI guidance for educational communities. With this unique approach, collaborating with key educational leaders and talented AI Innovators, we hope to empower educators to develop students that are future ready with a firm grasp of AI contributing to productivity, ethical media literacy, and safe and responsible well being.
NCCE strives to recognize and learn alongside outstanding educators to bring the most effective technology and best practices into classrooms, growing and inspiring educational communities.
Stay in touch with NCCE by connecting with us! https://ncce.org/ .
