WASHTENAW COUNTY, Mich. – As we increasingly ponder how to use artificial intelligence (AI) in our jobs and everyday lives, schools are also trying to figure out how to safely use it and teach it.
Ypsilanti High School is embracing artificial intelligence as a helpful tool rather than a threat to education. School leaders and students alike are learning how AI can enhance learning without replacing essential human skills.
“It gives us an edge and we should embrace it because it’s not going anywhere,” said Dr. Chelsea Harris Hugan, principal of Ypsilanti High School.
Dr. Harris Hugan is focused on balancing AI’s strengths with uniquely human qualities. “AI is good at speed and efficiency and predictability, but there are some things that humans only can do,” she said. “Humans can only do curiosity. So we’ve got to teach students how to be curious. We’ve got to teach students how to have compassion and empathy, and courage and have resiliency. So that’s what we focus on in our classrooms.”
Students at Ypsilanti High are already putting AI to work in creative ways. Jamir Pratt, a senior, used AI to develop a business proposal for a track recovery program. “I had a business proposal about track. It was like a track recovery program—online website get personalized plans for recovery in track and other sports,” Jamir explained.
Pratt said AI helped him bring his idea to life. “It helped me put it together—everything I wanted to offer it helped me put it together in a way that was cohesive.”
Another senior, Michael Martinez, emphasized that serious students are moving beyond using AI just to do homework. “Of course you can’t use it to write a paper—that’s obvious—but using it as a tool like after hours, using it as a teacher, you can’t get. ChatGPT is a great resource,” he said.
When asked if AI might replace learning, Martinez responded, “The way you can use it, yes. If you use it as a tool and back and forth with teachers, I think it’s a vital asset.”
Local 4 also spoke to the superintendent of the district, and she said that if schools are preparing students to enter the workforce, then utilizing all available tools must be part of the curriculum.