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Pocahontas superintendent announces district-specific AI pilot; board adopts new AI-use policy
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Arbuckle described a pilot of district-specific generative AI tools to support K-12 instruction and teacher coaching; the board also approved ASBA-recommended policy updates, including student/teacher AI guidance, during the Jan. 13 meeting.
Dr. Arbuckle told the Pocahontas School District board on Jan. 13 that the district has built and begun piloting a district-specific generative-AI tool (a GPT) tailored to Pocahontas curriculum and assessments to support teachers with lesson design, assessment creation and in-class coaching.
"We will be piloting that in those 10 classrooms at a minimum over the next semester," Dr. Arbuckle said, explaining the pilot is intended to test whether the tool improves teacher practice and student progress. He said curriculum materials, assessment targets and state guidance were incorporated into the tool so it will produce outputs aligned with district expectations.
The superintendent said 10 volunteer teachers across grade levels are participating and that administrators will collect both qualitative feedback and quantitative usage data every two weeks. If the semester-long pilot shows the tool helps teachers and students, administrators said they will consider broader rollout; if it does not, they will discontinue it.
Board members discussed practical and ethical concerns raised by AI in classrooms, including how teachers will monitor the production of student work and whether proprietary products used elsewhere provide appropriate local control. Dr. Arbuckle emphasized the district's preference for a locally configured tool that uses Pocahontas curricula rather than an off-the-shelf product whose content might not match district standards.
At the same meeting the board approved a package of policy updates recommended by the Arkansas School Board Association (ASBA). Among the updates was a policy providing guidance on student and teacher use of artificial intelligence and a policy change reflecting recent U.S. Department of Agriculture guidance about school-meal modifications.
The administration framed the AI-use policy to require transparency in students' and staff use of AI when completing assignments and to clarify how instructors should monitor authenticity and learning production. The board approved the bundled ASBA updates unanimously.
The district plans to report interim findings from the pilot to the board during the semester and to present more complete data and recommendations at a future meeting.
