From patrol drones to online trackers, a recent report from the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) shows drastic growth in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies in schools, as well as increasing parental concern and lack of awareness about these tools.
Based on nationally representative surveys of sixth- through 12th-grade public school teachers and parents, and ninth- through 12th-grade students, CDT found that during the 2023–24 school year, approximately a quarter of teachers say their school uses drones to patrol their campus. Nearly half of parents surveyed expressed concern about this practice, particularly Black and Hispanic parents.
“Introducing new technologies into K-12 schools also introduces new threat vectors and risks of irresponsible use. This underscores the importance of schools needing to clearly communicate with families and educate them about how edtech tools are being used in their child’s school — including its potential harms,” said Elizabeth Laird, director of the Equity in Civic Technology Project at CDT. “Just because technology is rapidly evolving doesn’t mean that community engagement should be left behind. Schools can do both.”
Teachers surveyed also cited ongoing issues caused by lack of strong privacy and security practices in their schools. For example, nearly 25 percent reported that their school has experienced a large-scale data breach in the past school year, and 13 percent said that they or another teacher have been doxed — meaning personal information about them such as a home address, private phone number or sensitive material had been revealed online without their consent.
Meanwhile, the survey showed various types of AI and other technology were commonly being used in schools for academic purposes or in an attempt to improve student safety, but that many parents were either unaware or concerned about certain uses.
Use of student data to predict whether individual students are at risk of poor academic outcomes was reported by 55 percent of teachers, for instance. About half of parents surveyed said they were concerned about this approach, with Black and Hispanic parents again expressing concern at higher rates than white parents.
Eighty-eight percent of teachers also said that their school uses student activity monitoring software to track what students are doing online, but only 45 percent of parents reported knowing about the use of this technology by their child’s school.
But schools aren’t the only ones using new technology without awareness from parents. The report showed 70 percent of high school students have used generative AI. However, only 46 percent of parents of high schoolers said that their child has used the technology.
