Students in Peace River North will be permitted to use artificial intelligence tools — but only in approved forms, under a developing district policy that prioritizes privacy, security and information verification.
The policy, still in development, was described as “overarching,” with some details yet to be finalized. Students and teachers will be limited to using district-approved programs and must be respectful towards the bot.
Protecting the privacy of students, teachers, and administrators is the current priority, Stephen Petrucci, the superintendent of Peace River North school district 60 explained.
“(AI use) would only be in the context of those approved tools that have their privacy impact assessment done,” he told board members at their final meeting before winter break.
Staff and students are allowed to use Google Gemini, Microsoft Co-Pilot, and TeachAid, an artificially intelligent lesson planner. Tools used by students will be under the supervision of an adult, and will not save prompts or any personal information, according to superintendent Petrucci.
Prompts are similar to a traditional “search” in so much that they generate the answer to a query. With a search engine, responses generally link to online sources – whereas artificial intelligence generates a unique response based on previous interactions with the prompter.
The draft policy also reminds students to follow the district’s code of conduct when interacting with AI systems.
“Use AI as you would in class – be honest, respectful, and responsible,” it reads. “Remember, AI can sometimes be wrong or unfair. Double-check information.”
The policy also includes guidance specific to Indigenous content, advising students to “be careful and respectful” when seeking information on Indigenous knowledge and traditions, which are often shared through storytelling and oral history.
The district has been developing the policy for nearly a year in collaboration with other school districts in the Lower Mainland, including West Vancouver and Surrey, as well as the province.
District staff will now develop specific guidelines for educators, students, and operations. Priority will be given to deciding what teachers can do to guide them as to what should concern them with student-use.
