Yesterday we talked to Zhi Su, Vancouver School Board District Principal for Learning and Information, and he clarified some of the points that we had concerns about.
These are the short summarized notes from that phone call.
Age for Copilot
Zhi Su confirmed that Copilot will only be made available for students over 13 years old. It would not be made available for elementary school students.
Release Date
There is no specific date for the release date of Copilot 13+ in schools yet. Zhi Su said the reason for this is that VSB is going through a consultation process, and until that is complete there is no formal date.
What Copilot Can and Can’t be used for
For what Copilot would or wouldn’t be used for in the classroom, Zhi Su said the decision is for teachers and schools to make. He said that Vancouver School Board’s role is to make resources like Copilot available for teachers. The BC Ministry for Education and Child Care prescribes the curriculum, and the teachers teach that curriculum.
Similarly any discussion of opting out of using AI would be something to bring up with school administrators and teachers.
Research on Negative Effects of AI on Learning
Regarding research showing the negative effects of AI on learning, Zhi Su said that “the interesting thing about research is, if you go looking for it, you’ll find it”.
He said that VSB works with the University of British Columbia and refers to research from them, and from the OECD. We have asked a follow-up question for information on which researchers and papers to refer to from UBC.
Update: We received a reply from Zhi Su after we asked for some researchers or papers from UBC that VSB was referring to. He sent us link to the UBC Generative AI page. This is a website filled with AI-generated images, with no peer-reviewed scientific studies, or mention of the effects (positive or negative) of AI on learning.
Use of Copilot 13+ at home
Students will be able to log into their school’s Copilot 13+ restricted accounts from home to use the AI tools if they wish.