AI Data Safety for Teachers PDF

AI data safety for teachers 4 December, 2024. @PaulMatthewsAI AI offers amazing benefits to students and teachers, but as we explore the possibilities, we need to wisely navigate the problems. Our students - and their data - have been entrusted to us, and it’s up to us to steward that data well. 1...

AI data safety for teachers 4 December, 2024. @PaulMatthewsAI AI offers amazing benefits to students and teachers, but as we explore the possibilities, we need to wisely navigate the problems. Our students - and their data - have been entrusted to us, and it’s up to us to steward that data well. 1) Never enter student data Avoid entering names, date of birth, address, or learning plan data for any of your learners. Some argue that we can use this if we de-identify the information. While technically correct, de-identification is tricky, and data re-identification is a huge industry. To keep our lerners safe, avoid entering any of their data into AI tools. 2) Use the right privacy settings Most AI tools allow you some input into how your data is managed. Consider the following steps if you use ChatGPT. Turn off ‘Improve the model for everyone’. Do this by going into the settings (do this by clicking your profile photo in the top right corner), click ‘Data controls’ and select ‘off’ for ‘improve the model for everyone’. This is a wise precaution that limits the way OpenAI uses your data. 3) Educate students about the risks If you’ve watched students use a computer for any length of time, you’ll know they can be a bit too relaxed with their data safety. We can encourage students not to upload personal, sensitive and health information to AI tools. warn students to be cautious when using prompts or information pasted from the internet or from dubious sources. 4) Spread the word to other teachers Last year a teacher proudly told me he had organised his camp groups by downloading a spreadsheet of student information, putting it into ChatGPT, and getting it to organise camp groups. The colour drained from his face when I told him this was likely a class-A data breach. Teachers aren’t malicious, we always want to do the best for our learners, but we don’t know what we don’t know. That’s why it’s vital to have conversations about wise AI use. The bottom line AI offers amazing opportunities to teachers and learners. We can use this technology to do lean into evidence-based practices and cater for needs of our learners by creating best-practice, personalised resources. But, as we explore the possibilities, we need to wisely navigate the problems; a crucial part of this is data safety. These four simple steps will help you explore AI while keep school and student data safe. Paul Matthews