AI at the Forefront: SCH Academy's Innovative Approach

SCH Academy is taking a groundbreaking approach to education by integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into its curriculum. The school's commitment to thoughtful and intentional AI implementation sets a new standard for K-12 education and is in line with SCH’s new strategic framework with a focus on “intentional and embedded innovation.”

Our AI task force is committed to fostering a culture of intentional and embedded innovation,” says Pete DiDonato, chief innovation officer at SCH and head of the AI task force and co-leader of the strategic framework priority “intentionally embedded innovation” alongside CEL director Ed Glassman. “Our goal is to empower our students to not only consume technology but to shape it, creating a future where AI serves as a powerful tool for positive change."

At the heart of SCH’s AI initiative is a dedicated task force comprised of administrators, IT professionals, teachers, and department heads. This team is responsible for evaluating AI tools, developing curriculum, creating policies, and studying the transformative impact of AI on the school community. Throughout the summer, numerous faculty members participated in AI-focused workshops and an AI Summit, where they gained experience exploring the potential of AI in the classroom. The Summit included a student panel, a faculty showcase, and an outside expert panel featuring: Steve Weber, VP for undergraduate education and a faculty member in electrical and computer engineering at Drexel; Youngmoo Kim, vice provost for University and Community Partnerships at Drexel and SCH parent and board member; and Amit Gandhi, professor of economics at the University of Pennsylvania and SCH parent. 

“We have a profound responsibility to prepare our students for a future where AI is not just a tool, but a fundamental reality,” says Head of School Delvin Dinkins. “To examine it thoughtfully is to unlock extraordinary possibilities. Personalized learning, adaptive feedback, and even AI-powered tutors—these are not distractions, but potential allies in our mission to cultivate critical thinkers, innovative problem solvers, and empathetic communicators. Our AI task force, faculty, and other school leaders will continually assess our students’, teachers’, and non-teaching staff’s relationship to AI to seek the best path forward."

A Philosophy of Responsible AI

The task force's subcommittee on philosophy developed a comprehensive AI philosophy that ensures the technology aligns with SCH Academy's values, enhances learning, supports teachers' pedagogical preferences, promotes responsible use, and protects the institution and students.

Key Elements of the Philosophy:

• Alignment with Values: AI integration must be consistent with SCH Academy's mission of inspiring unbounded curiosity and independent thought.
• Amplified Learning: AI tools should enhance learning experiences and provide personalized support but not replace human interaction.
• Teacher Support: Educators should have flexibility in their use of AI tools, with professional development opportunities available.
• Responsible and Transparent Use: AI usage must adhere to ethical guidelines, including data privacy and intellectual property laws.
• Safety and Security: The school prioritizes data security and ensures AI platforms meet high standards for student privacy.

Practical Implementation

“I’ve spent a lot of time learning about AI. It’s capable, it’s the future, it’s not a flash in the pan. It’s something that’ll be a part of these kids’ worlds forever, and we have to help guide them through that,” said Sarah McDowell, History Department chair, parent of two SCH graduates, and an original member of the 2023 AI committee. 

After considering and testing various AI platforms for students, with the help of the task force’s tools subcommittee, SCH unanimously selected MagicSchool.ai to provide students and staff with access to cutting-edge AI tools. The school is also continuing to invest in professional development to equip educators with the skills to integrate AI into their teaching effectively.

SCH faculty members agree: Innovation doesn’t have to be intimidating. 

“Tech has the ability to make people more creative, precise, and efficient,” says Juliet Fajardo, who teaches Architecture, 3D Modeling and Animation, Graphic Design, and Digital Fabrication courses at SCH.

Student Literacy in AI

A key component of SCH Academy's AI initiative is student literacy. The school is implementing a program that teaches students about technical understanding, critical interaction, ethical considerations, and creative integration of AI. The task force’s student literacy subcommittee has adopted Edvative’s four pillars as the path toward student literacy:

• Technical Understanding: Grasping how AI systems are designed, how they learn from data, and how they make decisions.
• Critical Interaction: Developing the skills to use AI tools effectively and responsibly, recognizing their limitations and potential biases.
• Ethical Consideration: Engaging with the moral questions raised by AI, from privacy concerns to the impact on employment and societal structures.
• Creative Integration: Seeing AI not just as a tool for consumption but as a canvas for innovation, encouraging students to imagine and design new AI applications that benefit society.

MagicSchool, used by over three million educators worldwide, helps students learn the outlined material (and the outlined material only if the teacher so chooses). This means the AI doesn’t give away the answer (unless instructed to), gives personalized feedback, and pushes students to explain their answers and demonstrate their learning. It can also adapt to fit each student’s knowledge level and pace. It doesn’t prevent students from using Open AI outside of the program, but it teaches them how it can be used most effectively.

Additionally, faculty and staff may use Google Gemini as a resource.

Specific Examples of AI Integration

SCH Academy has successfully integrated ChatGPT into various aspects of its curriculum. For example, kindergarten students have used AI to generate visual images based on their ideas in their CEL class. In their study of "inventors," students were tasked with creating their own invention ideas to help them compete in a yearly track and field day event. 

Using the school's AI platform, students uploaded their sketches and received 2-D-generated images of their invention ideas. They then responded to these images by adding additional prompts until they eventually had a complete rendering of their actual idea in their head. This creative process fostered innovation and helped students develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Upper School World Languages teacher Corrinne Dionne created a Spanish Language Learner Tutor in MagicSchool that includes interactive lessons, personalized learning, vocabulary building, grammar and writing assistance, speaking assistance, and cultural insights. “You have many opportunities for conversation practice with virtual tutors and you can engage in live conversations simulating real-life dialogue,” she says. “This is AI with guardrails. It won’t feed you the answers, but it will walk you through, step by step.”

Ed Glassman, director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (CEL) and a member of the AI task force, is using MagicSchool with his students. He can prompt them to answer the most important questions (and follow-ups) about their ventures before he meets with each student, enabling them to come to their first meeting fully prepared. Going forward, the program will allow them to “employ” a copyeditor, SEO content writer, and strategy consultant for their sole-run businesses, all tasks that would have been impossible to do simultaneously. If AI is the future of work, what better way to train these young entrepreneurs?

A Leader in AI Education

“Oversight is critical in this time of misinformation,” says McDowell, who notes that AI has limits and can inherit human bias. “We have to teach our students to continue to question and think critically.”

SCH Academy's innovative approach to AI education positions it as a leader in the field. By embracing AI in a thoughtful and responsible manner, the school is preparing its students for the future and setting a new standard for K-12 education.