Top of mind this week is how new technologies and advancements are reshaping our views of school, the unique value teachers provide, and more. For decades we have seen individuals, organizations, states, and leaders encourage educators and systems to think beyond the industrial model — standardized, efficiency-driven, and based on a mass-production approach to learning.
This may be the moment where we are universally forced to reflect on what we value most about learning environments and the institution we call school.
As I sifted through my bookmarks, I found a few highlights of AI and education for this week. But I also ran across this quote from my buddy Chris Agnew at Stanford, and it’s definitely worth highlighting.
“This is not plugging students in front of computers, engaging with a chat bot,” Chris Agnew, director of the Generative AI in Education Hub at Stanford, said. “This is supporting teacher practice and then enabling this trained, experienced adult that’s in front of kids.” — you can read the full article where Chris is quoted at https://www.vox.com/even-better/459534/chatgpt-cheating-schools-ai-education
EdTech East Africa’s New Video on AI Literacy
EdTech East Africa has released a new video exploring how AI literacy training can empower teachers to prepare learners for a digital-first world. The episode highlights why every teacher needs a foundational understanding of AI, the barriers educators face in low-resource schools, and how initiatives like Junior CodeCraft are scaling training to thousands. Through stories from classrooms, the video dispels myths about AI replacing teachers and shows how it can instead strengthen their role. The central takeaway: AI literacy is less about mastering tools and more about equipping teachers and learners with the skills, critical thinking, and ethical awareness needed for the future. See the video at https://youtu.be/5Zt6MnD
Meta commits to launching its newest Llama AI model before 2026
Meta is under pressure to release its next-generation AI model, Llama 4.X (aka Llama 4.5), by the end of 2025. This effort is being led by a specialized team within Meta Superintelligence Labs, to resolve bugs and elevate performance. This timeline may signal the intensity of the AI model race. OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google continue to dominate headlines with rapid releases, and Meta may be at risk of being perceived as lagging if it doesn’t deliver a high-performing model soon. As always, maintaining a focus on quality and safety should remain paramount. Llama models are open-weight and adopted by developers and researchers. An accelerated release of Llama could set the tone for open-source AI globally, which could result in impacts that reach everything from small-scale educational projects to enterprise-level adoption and deployment. Read more at https://ca.news.yahoo.com/meta-racing-clock-launch-newest-182009600.html
Open AI appointed an India-based Education Lead
OpenAI has appointed Raghav Gupta as its Head of Education Initiatives for India and the Asia‑Pacific region. He will be leading programs that integrate AI into classrooms in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and will oversee research into AI’s cognitive impact on learners. This appointment demonstrates OpenAI’s deepening commitment to advancing AI-powered learning across India and the broader region.
The Teacherless School Comes to Virginia: AI-Only “Guides” Replace Teachers at New Private School
A new AI-powered private school is launching this fall in Northern Virginia (near Dulles Airport), offering K–3 education for $65,000 annually. Students attend just two hours of core academics per day using adaptive, AI-driven apps — then spend afternoons developing life skills like bike riding or financial literacy, guided not by teachers but by adult guides. Founded on the belief that children don’t need a full school day in academics and that AI can tailor learning precisely to each child’s level. This raises important questions about the evolving role of the teacher.
As I read this article this week I was remembering the lessons of the old book The Teacher as the Expert, where the author positions teachers as knowledge experts, not just facilitators, arguing that the role of teachers should be rooted in both disciplinary expertise and professional judgment (including a focus on student engagement, synthesis, and analysis, and connecting the dots between topics and subjects). Read more about this emerging school at https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/08/26/alpha-school-virginia-ai-education
If you are interested in learning more about AI powered schools, check out the new article on “Alpha Schools,” which offer two hours of core academics per day via adaptive AI tools, are expanding across multiple states, now opening new campuses in California, North Carolina, Florida, and Puerto Rico, with tuition starting at $40,000. The Alpha Schools model emphasizes personalized pace but is raising questions about efficacy and educational completeness. Read the Axios article at https://www.axios.com/local/charlotte/2025/08/27/alpha-schools-ai-artifical-intelligence-education
YouGov survey on Public Opinion of AI
This relatively small survey (just over 1,000 adults) shows that public opinion on AI remains sharply divided. While people recognize potential in specific technical tasks, there is deep skepticism about AI in human-centered, ethical, and relational roles. Adoption rates are still low, but expectations for future capability are high. For educators, policymakers, and industry leaders, these results highlight the importance of building trust, ensuring transparency, and clarifying where AI can responsibly add value versus where human judgment must remain central.
Read more about the AI abilities report at https://today.yougov.com/topics/technology/explore/topic/Artificial_Intelligence
In other news UNESCO Digital Learning Week takes place next week and I am excited to be there to share a bit more about what I have been working on these past few months and spend time learning from the DLW team’s updates. More to come from that event I am sure.
Remember that the future of education is being shaped now and we need more voices that are informed, thoughtful, and equity-driven. Subscribe to Jody’s newsletter to get weekly updates delivered right to your in-box at https://jodybritten.medium.com/subscribe.
