(Image Source: Gavin Allanwood, Unsplash)

On September 2nd, two of the largest school districts banned generative AI, pulling it out of the hands of young students. While the subject converged in some ways, the application of the policy differs. It is yet to be seen which approach will prove to be more or less effective.

New York

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Public Schools Chancellor Kamar H. Samuels announced a new policy on AI in public schools. The policy is “a moratorium on student-facing generative artificial intelligence (AI) in grades 2K–8, with limited use in high schools…”. This means Large Language Models (LLMs), such as Claude or ChatGPT, are banned for student use up until 8th grade. The temporary ban will reach approximately 600,000 students, or about two-thirds of NYC public school enrollment. For high-school students and above, generative AI is allowed, but is subject to limitations and student completion of two 45-minute AI literacy modules.

The one-year ban will be used to evaluate AI use in schools through five limited pilots that the city will run at the high school level. 

“The tech industry wants us to believe that A.I.-powered early education is not only inevitable, but necessary. We do not see it that way,” said NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani in a Wednesday statement, as reported by Anna Merod who reports on news at the K-12 Dive.

Los Angeles

On Wednesday, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) held its first meeting of the Generative AI Ad Hoc Committee. In this meeting, LAUSD announced a new policy, which is the banning of generative AI in public schools for all grade levels. Unlike the NYC ban, the scope of the Los Angeles policy is broader. 

The ban took effect when school opened and went largely unpublicized until the September 2nd meeting where it surprised board members and parents in attendance. Board member Kelly Gonez said that “I, even as a board member,” was “under the expectation that we were still operating under last year’s policy.” Apparently, senior administrators had implemented the policy de facto, which was brought to light in the committee meeting that happened on Wednesday. Unlike NYC’s more detailed roll-out, the application of this policy seems less coordinated.

Another committee board member, Nick Melvoin, stated “if the policy is we’re not going to allow students [to] use generative AI for the meantime, then we should publicize that.”

Similar to NYC’s ban, LAUSD will still allow non-generative AI. This means AI tools that do not generate new content or writing, such as those that help with reading and diction, or speech recognition.

Going Forward

Two of the largest school districts just banned generative AI use in schools. 

NYC is taking a more graduated approach, banning the tool for grades up to 8th grade, while LAUSD is banning it across all grades. Both districts are only using a temporary, one-year ban, meaning that the policy will be revisited next year.

NYC has used a more detailed approach thus far because they have established pilot programs, albeit limited, for certain students to still use vetted generative AI tools. This collection of data could prove to be useful when analyzing future policy moves, either to argue for AI adoption or greater restrictions. LAUSD, on the other hand, has taken a less precise approach, but one that could be seen as stronger among anti-AI advocates.

Given that NYC and LAUSD are the largest school districts in the country, their similar yet differing approaches may serve as a catalyst for other districts nationwide to follow. As national debates regarding the role of AI in society come to the fore, this development is one worth watching closely.