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AI in Education

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.

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The Debate over AI in Education Is Stuck. Let’s Move It Forward in Responsible Ways That Truly Serve Students

Maddy Sims

Artificial intelligence is already reshaping how we work, communicate, and create. In education, however, the conversation is stuck. Sensational headlines make it seem like AI will either save public education (“AI will magically give teachers back hours in their day!”) or destroy it completely (“Students only use AI to cheat!” “AI will replace teachers!”).

  • Research Reports    

Think Forward: Building a Coherent Approach to AI in Education

Robin Lake, Maddy Sims, Bree Dusseault

In November 2025, the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) convened a diverse group of policymakers, system leaders, educators, researchers, funders, and technology experts for the Think Forward: Learning with AI Forum in New Mexico.

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Meeting the AI Moment Requires a New Education R&D Infrastructure

Auditi Chakravarty

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.

  • Briefs    
  • Research Reports    

Districts and AI: Early Adopters Focus More on Students in 2025-26

Bree Dusseault, Jared Hurwitz, Anagha Mandayam

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.

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A “Zero-Based Budgeting” Approach for High School Course Requirements in the Age of AI

Mike Petrilli

For better or worse, AI, and especially chatbots associated with Large Language Models, are already changing the daily rhythms of education here and around the world.

  • Blogs    
  • The Lens

AI Is Moving Fast—But School Responses and Parent Opinions Are Not

Amie Rapaport, Anna Saavedra, Daniel Silver, Nathanael Fast, Morgan Polikoff

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.

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Announcing CRPE’s Inaugural Think Forward Fellowship Cohort

Robin Lake, Bree Dusseault, Maddy Sims

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.  Education systems are at a critical crossroads with AI.

  • Research Reports    

AI Early Adopter Districts: The Promises and Challenges of Using AI to Transform Education

Bree Dusseault, Maddy Sims, Michael Berardino

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.

  • Research Reports    

What California Teachers Are Trying, Building, and Learning with AI

Chelsea Waite, Steven Weiner, Lisa Chu

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.

  • Blogs    
  • The Lens

Families Deserve a Seat at the AI Table

Tafshier Cosby, Isabel Muñoz-Colón, Bree Dusseault

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.

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Research Experts

Bree Dusseault

Principal and Managing Director, CRPE

Dana Harrison

Senior Research Analyst, CRPE

Isabel Muñoz-Colón

Executive Director, Washington State Opportunity Scholarship

Jessica Rosner

Guest Author

Maddy Sims

Senior Fellow, CRPE

Thérèse McKinny-Wood

Consulting Project Manager

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