If you have complete confidence in big technology companies to build safe and effective tools and products for children, you might not need to read this article. But if you have any doubts, you’ll agree that shifting procurement incentives toward prioritizing children’s well-being in technology development is necessary.
It’s not that technology companies are inherently malicious; instead, they haven’t had the right motivations to optimize for child wellbeing in product design. With the growing buzz around generative artificial intelligence and the push for its swift integration into K-2 education, it’s the perfect time to leverage the substantial purchasing power of America’s schools to advance this shift. This will be a positive development for students, schools, districts and technology companies.
$837 billion in K12 spending leverage
Imagine a classroom where every educational technology tool has been meticulously designed to protect children’s safety and privacy and help them learn. Technology companies are often at the forefront of innovation, but their track record in creating child-safe and effective products is questionable.
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Many education technology tools lack rigorous safety protocols to protect children from harmful content and interactions. Children’s data privacy is frequently compromised, with inadequate measures to protect sensitive information.
Without diverse input, many tools unintentionally perpetuate biases, disadvantaging certain groups of students. Products are often developed without a deep understanding of children’s educational needs and rights, leading to subpar learning outcomes. The rapid rise of generative AI has and will continue to exacerbate these challenges.
One of the most critical levers that school districts and schools have to change the behavior of service providers is procurement. School districts and schools purchase everything from buses and instructional materials to technology and food. The most recent spending data detailed expenditures of $837 billion for public elementary and secondary education in a single school year. This vast sum represents significant leverage that K12 policymakers can use to shift incentives in the technology industry.
It is incumbent on districts and schools to decipher which AI tools and products meet safety and education standards. For example, school systems have had to evaluate whether AI companies sell identifiable student data or whether they use student data to engage in targeted advertising to students, both legally prohibited practices.
However, district and school administrators often do not have the resources to undertake the compliance analysis that is required to ensure that tools marketed to school children are safe and prevent a school district from legal liability. Many districts have had to retain legal support to review the software platforms for safety compliance. Why should a school system have to spend this time and expense that would otherwise go to directly supporting students?
AI procurement benchmarks
To help districts and schools use their purchasing power to change provider behavior, our organizations have designed AI procurement benchmarks to serve as a starting point for defining and enforcing strict safety, privacy and efficacy standards for generative AI products and tools. The responsibility of ensuring safe AI tools should fall on the technology companies, as they possess the capability and understanding to build AI-powered tools and products that meet such standards.
Won’t this stifle innovation? To the contrary. Drawing from history and other disciplines, we know that rigorous standards can drive innovation and safety. The situation as it stands has districts and schools frozen, unable to make purchasing decisions because of the risks associated with the challenges laid out above. Establishing a set of standardized benchmarks for technology companies to meet will dramatically accelerate innovation by reducing friction in the sales cycle and pave the way for expanded use of AI in education.
Of course, this isn’t a universal fix. AI will still walk through the school doors in the pockets of students and staff. And children will continue to access AI tools at home that aren’t designed with their best interests. But it is a promising place to start.
By setting clear standards, demanding transparency and prioritizing educational value, districts and schools can drive the development of safer, more effective technology products for children. This approach protects our children and ensures that technology is designed with a deep understanding of their needs, paving the way for a brighter, safer educational future.
