The advent of AI in schools presents a new slew of obstacles and questions for educators and administrators: How can investments and policies ensure these benefits reach the students most in need? How will so many districts train up their teachers amid other pressing priorities and increasing financial constraints? How can educators learn quickly about which AI tools and strategies work best?
At CRPE, we are deeply engaged in trying to help answer these questions by understanding and shaping the impact of AI in K–12 education. We are committed to leading the way in this important work, ensuring that AI becomes a tool for enhancing learning and equity, rather than exacerbating existing disparities.
Depending on where you sit in the education ecosystem, 2025 has felt either deeply discouraging or full of possibility. On one hand, earlier this year, the federal government signaled retreat from its commitment to education research, and just this week, the Trump administration took further steps to dismantle the Department of Education.
Introduction More Early Adopters are piloting systemwide AI strategies Early Adopters focus more on students, mostly with new tools Reimaginers keep pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with AI Districts must advance more coherent AI strategies for teaching and learning Across the country, the approach schools take towards Generative AI has changed: it’s moved from usage bans to pockets of experimentation to a broader conversation about how schools can and should use AI to enhance teaching, learning, and operations.
This piece is a follow-up to this blog, published last year. AI is present in classrooms more than ever before, partly due to tech companies’ provision of professional learning for teachers and partly due to school districts’ large-scale purchases of AI software.
The Center on Reinventing Public Education has announced its inaugural AI Fellowship Cohort, a group of visionary policymakers, system leaders, educators, researchers, funders, and tech experts who will collectively work to address the toughest challenges around AI in education.
Artificial intelligence is already reshaping how school districts plan instruction, support teachers, and engage students. AI has the potential to transform the education delivery model and address learning gaps—but without more support, guidance, and resources, it could have the opposite effect.
How are educators engaging with AI to support teaching and learning? In partnership with the Silicon Schools Fund, CRPE studied 18 California schools that piloted AI tools to address core instructional challenges, including learning gaps, low engagement, time constraints, and behavioral issues.
As AI rapidly reshapes the classroom, families are hopeful but uncertain. While the majority of families surveyed by the National Parents Union (NPU) in 2023 agreed that the potential benefits of AI in K-12 education either outweigh or are equal to the possible downsides, only a fraction feel confident in their understanding of the technology.
