By Linda Barney, Barney and Associates
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming both education and industry. There is a deep workflow integration of AI used in industry which makes training K-12 students in AI essential to their future in the workforce. In his 2026 OCSTA Summer SuperQuest session, Jacob Niebergall, OCSTA President, presented how AI is being used in K-12 education. Education and industry attendees discussed policies, challenges, and possibilities in teaching AI to K-12 students. While AI should be viewed as a powerful tool that enhances human capabilities, human judgment, ethics, and critical thinking remain essential.
The Current State of AI Adoption in Oregon: Each District is an Island
A lack of national or state laws surrounding artificial intelligence software and an entrenched history of local control leaves each Oregon school district to determine its own AI policy. While some districts have developed policies and procedures for AI use, others are still exploring how to integrate the technology responsibly. The Oregon Department of Education has created a Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in K-12 Classrooms Guidance website with information to help school districts develop AI policies.
AI Governance, Privacy, and Legal Responsibilities
As schools and organizations expand AI use, governance and legal compliance become increasingly important. The session discussed regulations and requirements including the Federal and State laws listed below. School districts must carefully evaluate AI tools before approving them for student use. Filtering responsibilities, student data protection, and vendor agreements are all critical parts of responsible implementation.
“Oregon K-12 school districts can create strong AI policies. With clear local policies, grounded in Federal and State laws, districts can create educational walled gardens with stricter, enforced access to online and software tools designed to encourage critical thinking and build foundational skills,” states Niebergall.
Educators need to keep the following laws top of mind as they develop and implement AI policies in their districts and classrooms:
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) – 1974: Federal law which protects student education records. Schools need consent to share personally identifiable information unless the vendor qualifies as a school official with a legitimate educational interest.
Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) – 1998: Federal law which governs online services collecting data from children under 13. Requires verifiable parental consent- schools may consent on parents’ behalf for purely educational purposes.
Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) – 2000: Ties E-Rate funding to internet safety: filtering of obscene or harmful content, monitoring of minors online, and a digital citizenship education requirement.
Oregon Student Information Protection Act – Oregon 2015 ORS 336.184: Bars operation of K-12 online services from targeted advertising, profiling, or selling student data, and requires reasonable security and deletion on district request.
Access to AI Tools for K-12 Students
There is a wide range of opinions on how K-12 school districts should instruct students about using AI tools and the appropriate age for students to learn about AI. During the session discussion, teachers indicated that some districts teach AI only in Computer Science (CS) courses. Some teachers believe that AI literacy should be developed across grade levels and subject areas rather than limited to specialized computer science courses. Currently, there is no consensus across Oregon schools as to if or when AI is introduced to students.
AI Programs and Models Used in Schools
Niebergall described three AI programs commonly used in industry and their applications in school districts including Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, and Google Gemini. Attendees discussed teaching students how they use these tools in structured AI class examples.
AI Prompt Engineering as a Foundational Skill
Students and professionals need to understand how to communicate clearly with AI systems using prompts, refine instructions, and evaluate outputs. A portion of the discussion focused on the importance of teaching students good frameworks for writing AI prompts. Teaching the ChatGPT ABCDQ prompt formula or the Gold Model for prompt writing provides effective methods for interacting with AI systems.
Building AI Literacy and Understanding AI Limitations
Niebergall stressed that students should understand what AI is and how it works rather than viewing it as a mysterious or human-like intelligence. He also warned against anthropomorphizing AI systems. Because AI tools generate responses based on patterns and probabilities, users must recognize their limitations, potential biases, and mistakes. A strong foundation in AI literacy helps students become informed users who can take advantage of AI's strengths while remaining aware of its weaknesses.
Preparing Students for the Future Workforce
As AI becomes increasingly integrated into workplace tools and processes, familiarity with AI systems will become a standard professional expectation. The session focused on the importance of teaching critical thinking and ethics. Critical thinking is the ability to question, analyze, evaluate evidence, and make informed judgments. AI can support problem solving, but it cannot replace the reflective processes that help individuals develop knowledge and wisdom. Human judgment, skepticism, ethical reasoning, and careful decision making remain critical skills in an AI-driven world.
Strong governance, privacy protections, AI literacy, prompt engineering skills, critical thinking, ethical awareness, and clarity on when AI should or should not be used will help students and professionals navigate an increasingly AI-enabled future. Students must learn that AI is most effective when it augments human capability rather than replacing human thought and judgment.