Teachers get a jump on more effective assessments, AI policy and vouchers

Teachers had an ambitious agenda at their divisional meeting on Monday, where they learned about the union's guide to artificial intelligence, discussed the assessment portion of the Every Student Succeeds Act-a policy the AFT is attempting to steer away from overreliance on standardized testing-and heard from author Josh Cowen about the threat of vouchers and how to fight it.

The meeting kicked off with a review of two new AFT publications and related resolutions, expected to pass during convention. The first publication, "Real Solutions for Improving Assessment," highlights AFT affiliates that are working to improve assessment practices; it describes the kinds of changes educators can push for from the classroom to the state levels while large-scale change is being advocated for at the federal level.

The assessment report is linked to a resolution, "Equity Through Culturally Responsive, Balanced Assessment Systems," that would create a national task force to reduce overreliance on standardized tests and address other harms resulting from the federal Every Student Succeeds Act. The resolution also supports union advocacy regarding more reasonable and effective assessments at the state level.

The second publication is "Commonsense Guardrails for Using Advanced Technology in Schools," a set of guidelines that helps educators optimize the educational benefits of artificial intelligence and other technology, while minimizing potential risks. The associated resolution, "Social Media, Artificial Intelligence and Generative Artificial Intelligence," calls for ethical employment of social media, AI and machine learning models.

Teachers nodded in recognition and validation as Josh Cowen, author of The Privateers: How Billionaires Created a Culture War and Sold School Vouchers, described how voucher systems can decimate public schools by gutting funds and prioritizing profit. Among other problems, vouchers go primarily to fund students-often from wealthier families-who are already enrolled in private schools, and to fund schools that can discriminate against students of color, low-income students and students who need special education accommodations. Vouchers have caused educational declines, said Cowen, and they have been expanding in more and more states.

The meeting wrapped up with a description of Hand in Hand and Parents Circle: Bereaved Israelis and Palestinians for Peace, two organizations that bring together Jewish and Arab people in Israel to bolster understanding and peace.

[Virginia Myers, photo by Russ Curtis]