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The Year of AI: Transforming K-12 Education in 2025
2025 offers immense opportunities to harness AI’s potential in education, from fostering AI literacy to addressing its risks.
Date of writing
January 4, 2025
Time of reading
2 minutes
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to evolve, experts anticipate that 2025 will mark a turning point in its integration into K-12 education, according to The Hill. Building on the foundational efforts of 2024, including federal guidance and teacher training, AI is set to achieve new levels of maturity in schools.
In 2024, educators and policymakers worked to incorporate AI into the classroom, despite challenges and uncertainties. Zarek Drozda, executive director of Data Science 4 Everyone at the University of Chicago, highlighted this transitional period: “I think the system was still in reaction mode. I think we still saw a lot of uncertainty as to where and how AI fits into education. I think you saw this in the way that AI was beginning to be implemented into technology that facilitates classroom management.”
Looking ahead, Drozda is optimistic about AI’s potential: “I think, over time, going into this next year, that you’re going to see more maturity come to the system even further.”
His group’s report reveals significant strides in professional development and curriculum expansion. Since the 2020-21 school year, over 2,500 teachers have received 71,000+ hours of data science training, and 277 schools now offer data science classes.
The federal government’s 74-page AI toolkit for schools, released earlier in 2024, addressed critical concerns such as student privacy, integration strategies, and AI's role in personalized learning. Teachers have already begun leveraging AI to streamline lesson planning and tailor instruction to individual students' needs.
However, the year also highlighted potential risks, such as AI-driven bullying. Reports emerged of students using the technology to create inappropriate images of classmates. Addressing these challenges, Pati Ruiz, senior director of education technology at Digital Promise, emphasized the importance of safety and education:“I think we’re better equipped to use it in ways that promote safety and privacy, and that mitigate some of the big security risks. … Harm can be spread at scale with these systems and tools, and we need to make sure that we are helping folks both understand that and mitigate that.”
Despite progress, data from the Data Science 4 Everyone report shows a significant gap in access to data science education. As of the 2022-23 school year, only California and Oregon had more than 3% of students enrolled in data science courses, while 20 states reported 0% participation. Advocates stress the need for responsible and equitable integration of AI into students’ lives.
Ruiz predicts increased focus on evaluating AI systems and tools in the coming year. Meanwhile, concerns over misinformation loom large. The World Economic Forum identified AI misinformation as a major global threat in 2024, particularly during the election cycle. Noemi Waight, associate professor of science education at the University of Buffalo, warns that this issue will persist in 2025: “What we will see in 2025, definitely, I think we will see a proliferation of the use of AI, particularly in thinking about the ways in which misinformation and disinformation gets doled out to communities.”
Cost remains a significant barrier for schools adopting AI. While popular tools like ChatGPT are free or inexpensive for individuals, implementing schoolwide systems for teachers and students requires substantial investment. As AI technology advances, educators and administrators must stay vigilant to ensure its responsible and effective use.
2025 offers immense opportunities to harness AI’s potential in education, from fostering AI literacy to addressing its risks. As schools move beyond experimentation, the focus will shift toward embedding AI into classrooms responsibly and equitably.
In 2024, educators and policymakers worked to incorporate AI into the classroom, despite challenges and uncertainties. Zarek Drozda, executive director of Data Science 4 Everyone at the University of Chicago, highlighted this transitional period: “I think the system was still in reaction mode. I think we still saw a lot of uncertainty as to where and how AI fits into education. I think you saw this in the way that AI was beginning to be implemented into technology that facilitates classroom management.”
Looking ahead, Drozda is optimistic about AI’s potential: “I think, over time, going into this next year, that you’re going to see more maturity come to the system even further.”
His group’s report reveals significant strides in professional development and curriculum expansion. Since the 2020-21 school year, over 2,500 teachers have received 71,000+ hours of data science training, and 277 schools now offer data science classes.
The federal government’s 74-page AI toolkit for schools, released earlier in 2024, addressed critical concerns such as student privacy, integration strategies, and AI's role in personalized learning. Teachers have already begun leveraging AI to streamline lesson planning and tailor instruction to individual students' needs.
However, the year also highlighted potential risks, such as AI-driven bullying. Reports emerged of students using the technology to create inappropriate images of classmates. Addressing these challenges, Pati Ruiz, senior director of education technology at Digital Promise, emphasized the importance of safety and education:“I think we’re better equipped to use it in ways that promote safety and privacy, and that mitigate some of the big security risks. … Harm can be spread at scale with these systems and tools, and we need to make sure that we are helping folks both understand that and mitigate that.”
Despite progress, data from the Data Science 4 Everyone report shows a significant gap in access to data science education. As of the 2022-23 school year, only California and Oregon had more than 3% of students enrolled in data science courses, while 20 states reported 0% participation. Advocates stress the need for responsible and equitable integration of AI into students’ lives.
Ruiz predicts increased focus on evaluating AI systems and tools in the coming year. Meanwhile, concerns over misinformation loom large. The World Economic Forum identified AI misinformation as a major global threat in 2024, particularly during the election cycle. Noemi Waight, associate professor of science education at the University of Buffalo, warns that this issue will persist in 2025: “What we will see in 2025, definitely, I think we will see a proliferation of the use of AI, particularly in thinking about the ways in which misinformation and disinformation gets doled out to communities.”
Cost remains a significant barrier for schools adopting AI. While popular tools like ChatGPT are free or inexpensive for individuals, implementing schoolwide systems for teachers and students requires substantial investment. As AI technology advances, educators and administrators must stay vigilant to ensure its responsible and effective use.
2025 offers immense opportunities to harness AI’s potential in education, from fostering AI literacy to addressing its risks. As schools move beyond experimentation, the focus will shift toward embedding AI into classrooms responsibly and equitably.