Introduction

At the Japanese International School (JIS), the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into teaching and learning must align with the school's mission to "empower students to think, create, discover, solve problems, become responsible citizens, and achieve their personal best" and its vision “to create: educated, compassionate, creative, active and empowered citizens of the world.” 

This policy document outlines JIS's approach to AI implementation, ensuring academic honesty, and fostering responsible AI usage throughout our educational community. It incorporates JIS’s academic integrity policy and acknowledges and reflects the International Baccalaureate's (IB) stance on AI and best practices from other International Schools.

Rationale

The purpose of this policy is to promote a shared ethos of academic integrity across the school, equip students with the skills necessary to conduct their academic work honestly and ethically, and provide clear guidelines on how to acknowledge the contributions of others. AI is here to stay and is already impacting every industry. Educators have a responsibility to teach students about AI, including its benefits and limitations, and how to use it ethically. AI can personalise and adapt learning pathways for all students, foster international mindedness by connecting students with diverse cultures and perspectives, enhance creative thinking, and promote personal excellence. However, it is important to acknowledge the potential challenges of AI, and to use it in a way that supports rather than supplants the role of human educators.

What is AI?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a term used to describe systems that are taught to automate tasks normally requiring human intelligence. "Generative AI" refers to tools that can produce new content, such as text, images, or music, based on patterns they've learned from their training data.

Key Terms

AI Literacy: AI literacy refers to an individual's ability to understand, critically evaluate, and use AI technology effectively, safely, and ethically. It encompasses the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to navigate the complexities of AI, including its capabilities, limitations, ethical implications, and societal impact.

Academic Integrity: Academic integrity is a commitment to ethical behaviour in all aspects of academic work, including research, writing, assessment, and collaboration. It requires honesty, fairness, respect, responsibility, and courage in upholding ethical standards and avoiding academic misconduct.

Authenticity: Authenticity, in the context of education, refers to the genuineness and originality of a student's work, reflecting their own ideas, understanding, and effort. It entails producing work that is not plagiarised, fabricated, or inappropriately influenced by external sources.

Bias: Bias in AI refers to systematic errors or unfair outcomes in AI systems that result from the training data or the design of the algorithms. These biases can perpetuate existing societal inequalities and stereotypes, leading to discriminatory or unjust outcomes for certain individuals or groups.

Digital Citizenship: Digital citizenship refers to the responsible and ethical use of technology and the Internet. It encompasses the knowledge, skills, and behaviours necessary to participate safely, responsibly, and effectively in the digital world.

AI Guidelines

To effectively and responsibly integrate AI into our learning environment at JIS, this policy focuses on the following key elements: Acknowledge, Integrate, Monitor, and Support (A.I.M.S.).

• Acknowledge

JIS recognises the significant potential of AI to transform teaching and learning and improve operations.

• JIS acknowledges that AI is a powerful and rapidly evolving tool that will impact many aspects of modern life.

• JIS also acknowledges the potential challenges posed by AI and the ethical considerations that must be addressed.

• Integrate

JIS will seek to integrate AI tools into the school curriculum in a way that:

• Aligns with the school's mission, vision, and the IB learner profile, focusing on the development of the whole child.

• Enhances teaching and learning in a way that benefits students, teachers, and school administrators.

• Is accessible, equitable, and promotes inclusion for all students.

• Promotes the development of essential skills for the 21st century, including communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creative problem-solving.

• Supports the development of AI literacy and digital citizenship among both students and staff.

• Emphasises the importance of authenticity in student work and adheres to the JIS Academic Integrity Policy.

• Prioritises data privacy and security in compliance with relevant regulations.

• Is transparent, with stakeholders informed about how, why, and when AI tools are being used.

• Monitor

JIS will closely monitor the use of AI at school and commit to regularly reviewing this policy to ensure its effectiveness and relevance.

• The impact of AI tools on the JIS community will be actively and regularly monitored, and emerging risks and opportunities will be identified and managed.

• Review will include evaluating the effectiveness of AI tools for teaching and learning, considering any unforeseen consequences of their use, and ensuring continued compliance with relevant data protection and privacy laws.

• The school will use a variety of tools and approaches to authenticate student work, including human review and interviews.

• Teachers will be responsible for clearly communicating to students when and how they may use AI tools for their schoolwork.

• Students will be explicitly taught how to properly reference the use of AI in their work.

• Students should be mindful of the limitations of AI and biases, and avoid over-reliance on it.

• The use of AI in the classroom should not undermine or negatively impact the agency of our community.

• Support

JIS will provide support for both teachers and students in using AI effectively and ethically.

• JIS will provide ongoing professional development opportunities for teachers to deepen their understanding of AI, including training on:

  • How AI works and its potential applications in education

  • The ethical considerations surrounding the use of AI

  • How to select and implement appropriate AI tools in the classroom

  • How to use AI to support differentiated instruction

  • How to maintain academic integrity when using AI in the classroom

• Students will receive age-appropriate instruction on the following:

  • What AI is, including the different types of AI and their capabilities and limitations

  • How to use AI in a responsible and ethical way

  • How to critically evaluate AI-generated content

  • The potential impact of AI on society

• Parents will be kept informed about the school’s AI policy, the ways in which AI is being used at JIS, and their role in supporting their children's learning with AI.

Conclusion

As AI technologies continue to advance, it is our responsibility as educators to guide our students responsibly and ethically. By fostering a culture of understanding, transparency, and critical engagement with AI, JIS aims to prepare its students to navigate the evolving landscape of AI's influence, ensuring they become responsible members and empowered citizens of the world.