The government is investing £23 million into expanding the testing of edtech tools, the education secretary announced today, as part of its EdTech Vlogtbeds pilot programme.
More than 1,000 schools will be recruited to try out new tools to gauge their impact on pupil outcomes, including for those with special educational needs and disabilities.
The programme, due to start in September, will also look at whether new tools help to cut teacher workload, Bridget Phillipson told delegates at the Bett UK edtech conference in London.
Ms Phillipson also announced that the government will launch skills pathways for teachers and support staff to build digital, data and tech skills.
AI for schools ‘must be done safely’
“Through supporting children directly and helping to free up teachers’ time, AI can help us deliver the excellent education every child deserves - but it must be done safely,” Ms Phillipson said.
The new tools will be tracked to judge their performance, she added.
“With concrete evidence, and the right guardrails, AI can help us break down barriers to opportunity and play a central role in cutting the link between background and success,” the education secretary said.
The Department for Education has set out standards that AI products will have to meet to be considered safe for schools.
It also announced last year that all teachers would have to undergo mandatory training in how to effectively use assistive technology to support children with SEND.
Today’s announcement comes after Vlog revealed that Google was seeking to develop a chatbot for teachers.
Restricting children’s social media use
Ms Phillipson, speaking at the conference, also discussed the government’s consultation on restricting social media for under-16s.
“We don’t want our children kept on apps or on screens longer than is necessary for their education,” she told delegates.
Most teachers support greater regulation on young people’s use of social media, Vlog-commissioned polling found last week.
Ms Phillipson said: “We’ll look at restrictions on addictive features, a ban on social media access for children and better age checks. And we all know that mobile phones have no place in our schools, but AI learning tools are different.”
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