On January 13th, the Sanford School Department sent 11 staff members spanning our K-12 schools to the Association of Computer Technology Educators of Maine (ACTEM), and the Maine Educational Technology Directors Association (METDA) hosted an AI joint summit focused on elevating technology use, especially Artificial Intelligence (AI), in K-12 education.
Educators from across the state gathered for this one-day event featuring keynotes, breakout sessions, and plenty of networking centered around artificial intelligence.
Keynote speakers included Dr. Amanda Fox, lead researcher at OpenAI, who spoke about the future societal impacts of AI and how to raise a generation prepared to interact safely with AI systems.
Breakout sessions covered topics like using AI chatbots to enhance tutorials, AI bias and ethical considerations, using machine learning to individualize instruction, and Natural Language Processing applications across subjects as well as time for discussion about the impact of AI on district policies.
With AI and automation shaping the future of work, ACTEM and METDA aim to hold conferences that arm teachers with forward-thinking uses of emerging technologies. The educators in attendance left motivated to integrate ethical, creative AI to prepare students for the world ahead.