Based on feedback from our first AI professional development day at Felsted School in October, teachers particularly valued not just the speakers sessions, but the opportunity to connect with educators on similar AI journeys. They found immense benefit in sharing experiences, discussing common challenges, and learning from each other’s approaches. This reinforces our belief that while online resources are valuable, there’s unique power in face-to-face professional development. Therefore, we are committed to bringing these training opportunities to different regions.
Our professional development sessions cover essential topics including AI 101, AI for productivity and time saving, AI and safeguarding, and AI and media literacy. Following our ‘Listen First’ approach, we also tailor each training to meet teachers’ specific needs. As a non-profit, we offer this support to schools free of charge.
Interested in hosting a free professional development day at your school?
While many schools are grappling with competing priorities in the face of emerging AI, learning from others who have started this journey could perhaps provide the confidence to step into this unchartered territory. This month, we’re excited to feature:
Woodland Academy Trust, the first to achieve the AI Quality Mark, discussing their approach to AI strategy development.
Brentwood School, who has generously shared the various resources they have developed and are using around AI.
Woodland Academy Trust’s AI Journey: From Exploration to Implementation
At Woodland Academy Trust, our journey with AI began with a commitment to explore innovative ways to enhance both teaching and operational efficiency across our schools. This year, we launched with a focused professional development day, setting the stage for collaborative discussions on AI’s potential impact in education, hearing from leading experts in the sector. Using this day to develop and later launch our AI strategy, our efforts have since evolved into targeted initiatives, such as a dedicated research project where educators trial AI lesson-planning tools to gauge their value in reducing workload and enhancing lesson quality.
Our approach centres on piloting AI solutions to ensure they genuinely meet the needs of our schools before deciding whether to embrace them fully. One of our key pilots has been around trialling personalised learning solutions in reading. By using AI tools that adapt to each student’s reading level and interests, we’ve aimed to engage students more deeply while also supporting differentiated learning paths. In parallel, we’ve been exploring AI-driven feedback in maths and writing. These tools offer instant, specific feedback, which allows students to understand and correct mistakes in real-time, fostering independence and boosting confidence in their abilities.
Achieving the AI Quality Mark was a proud milestone that affirmed our thoughtful, strategic approach to AI integration. Throughout this journey, we’ve learned the importance of fostering a culture that embraces experimentation and is adaptable to the evolving landscape of digital tools. The insights from our staff, coupled with our focus on Universal Design for Learning and digital skills development, have underscored the value of a collective commitment to change management. We hope our experience encourages other schools to take their first steps on their AI journey, embracing both the challenges and the transformative potential AI brings to education.
Brentwood School: Leading the Way While Supporting Others
Brentwood School is one of the first independent schools currently pursuing the AI Quality Mark with us. Our initial meeting with their Director of Innovative Learning, Matthew King, was highly productive. Having navigated the space of AI in their school for more than a year and hosted an AI Conference earlier this year, Brentwood is spearheading initiatives in this area. While leading the way, they are passionate about supporting other schools who may not have the capacity and resources to build from scratch. This includes helping non-fee-paying schools through the AI Quality Mark process and sharing their developed resources with the wider community as shown below.
AI Task Barometer to communicate with students on what extent AI can be used in a particular assignment
AI Task Barometer of Brentwood School
Have you been experimenting with AI at school and would you be interested in sharing that with our broader community? Please let us know as we’d love to hear from you.
The Framework of AI Quality Mark Gives Schools the First Starting Point
Following Woodland Academy Trust as the first pilot trust to achieve the AI Quality Mark, we are pleased to roll this out to more schools across the UK. In the past month, we have had the privilege to speak with 18 schools and academy trusts about this self-evaluation framework and accreditation process. During our conversations, we found that schools that are already on the road of integrating AI have valued it as an opportunity to review their accomplishments and plan for enhancement in a more structured way to communicate with stakeholders such as parents and governors. For schools just starting on this journey, the framework provides clear guidance on how and where to begin.
“The core value of the AI Quality Mark lies in the schools’ journey of engaging in thoughtful reflection, gathering evidence, and self-assessment to understand their position. This makes the process itself as valuable as the final certification outcome.” explained Dr. Andy Kemp, architect of the AI Quality Mark and one of the assessors of this accreditation project.
Please visit our website or sign up below for more information about the AI Quality Mark.
In a world where technology is evolving so rapidly, we believe we can only adapt to change and address the needs of the educators and students effectively by joining forces and leveraging each other’s expertise and resources to create meaningful impact. We’re incredibly grateful to have recently collaborated with Jen from ACS International Schools for STEAM 24’ and to have had great conversations with Becci and Ben from Computing At School. Read on to learn more about their wonderful work!
At ACS International Schools, our mission is to enhance education for all school-age children, with STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths) subjects at the forefront. Many future job opportunities will be within STEAM-related industries, yet the subjects can be challenging to teach due to the resources, expertise, and funding they require. Through partnerships, we bring together industry experts, universities, and charities to deliver enriching experiences like STEAM 2024. This particular event links students with pilots, engineers, scientists, and many more professionals, offering hands-on workshops and career guidance. By championing STEAM, we prepare students for an ever-changing world where technology and adaptability are key.
Our “Inspire before you educate” ethos ensures students leave events like STEAM 2024 excited about learning and their future careers. Beyond single events like this, ACS’s collaborative initiatives continue year-round, fostering a love of learning.
By Jen Baguley, Partnerships Events Manager, ACS International Schools
Jen Baguley (in the middle) and the working team of ACS at STEAM 24’.
Earlier this month we met with the wonderful folks at CAS to discuss synergies in our work and find ways to collaborate on various projects. We've included a snippet of information about the fantastic work that they do below, in case this is of interest:
CAS offers an AI community for teachers, and everything is industry funded so is free for teachers. They have online webinars for CPD, resources, how-to videos, a forum, case studies and more!
The webinars usually start at 4pm and last around an hour. They are run monthly, and you can catch up on previous sessions too. On 4th Dec there is a session exploring Google NotebookLM and how you can use it. Previous events look at writing effective prompts, Oak Academy’s lesson planning tool Aila and more. There are resources for teaching students what AI is and how to use it responsibly with different resources for different age groups. There is also a template AI policy and 15 how-to videos with more on the way.
By Becci Peters, Computing Subject Lead (Secondary/ Tertiary), BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT
Foundational Impact Podcast: Sharing from Educators in HK and the UK
On this month’s podcast, we have invited Joseph Liu, a teacher and curriculum developer specialising in education technology in Hong Kong, and Julie Carson, Director of Education at Woodland Academy Trust in the UK. They share their firsthand experiences of integrating AI in schools, offering practical observations and insights about introducing AI in their respective settings. Listen to these two episodes to hear real-world examples of AI implementation in education. They are available on all major podcast platforms.
Foundational Insights is a community-driven newsletter exploring the journey of AI in education.
Whether you’re a teacher, student, administrator, or simply passionate about the future of learning, we invite you to share any thoughts you have about AI in education with us. They could be your own experiences using AI in your classroom or school, some handy tips on how AI tools have helped lighten your admin load, or counterpoints and disagreements against the usual ideas about how AI is shaping students' learning experiences.
