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Plano ISD accelerates classroom tech rollout, outlines pedagogy and AI guidance; student AI course planned
Summary
Instructional-technology leaders reported large deployments of classroom hardware (BenQ displays, iPads) and a shift from device access to verified instructional impact; the district is developing AI guidance and aims to require a 9th-grade AI fundamentals course by October 2026.
Executive Director of Instructional Technology Matt Fry and Ashley Jackson Ivy, Director of Digital Learning and Innovation, told trustees the district has progressed from design into scaled delivery for classroom technology, including the installation of BenQ interactive flat panels and delivery of tens of thousands of discrete components to campuses. Fry said model classrooms were created on each campus and that interactive displays have been installed in 2,000 classrooms so far.
"By the fall of 2024, we had delivered to campuses more than 20,000 sort of discrete components," Fry said, and he added that "we've delivered close to 6,000 new iPads, to nearly 300 classrooms." Ashley Jackson Ivy described a shift for 2026–27 from untethered teaching to a pedagogy-focused phase emphasizing purposeful minutes, vertical 'I can' statements aligned K–12 and teacher 'look‑fors' to measure impact. The district plans a train‑the‑trainer model to scale practice across roughly 3,000 staff members.
On artificial intelligence, staff said the board recently adopted AI policy (CQD) and the district has reconvened a work group to build guidance and classroom protocols. A board member stated that the AI course for students is "non negotiable," and staff set a target to make a 90‑minute AI fundamentals course available to 9th graders by October 2026; staff also said all teachers and staff will complete an AI overview aligned with district policy and approved tools.
Trustees asked about screen time, accommodations and differentiation; staff said TEKS updates and curriculum-aligned technology expectations will guide how devices are used and that assistive technology and differentiated approaches will support students with special needs.
