A Middle Ground on
AI in the Classroom
Providence School Opts for Guided Use and
Human-First Learning in a Tech-Driven Age
By Tiana Moloney | November 20, 2025
Read more from Schools of Thought 2025 here.
It’s no surprise that the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has complicated how schools approach traditional education. The temptation to use it is hard to resist. Why spend weeks of digging, drafting, and revising a research paper when one can now be generated in seconds? Why wouldn’t students take the shortcut?
While many schools have chosen to outright ban its use among students, Providence School has taken a different approach. They acknowledge that students are likely going to use it, which is why they neither reject AI entirely nor accept it without question. “We recognize that it’s a tool that’s incredibly useful and powerful,” shares Providence History teacher Chris Eckert, who is also on their AI Counsel Lead.
Assistant Principal Susan Champion agrees. She emphasizes a middle ground approach to AI in the classroom, noting that banning it outright may lead students to go behind their teachers’ backs and use it anyway. “I think AI has valuable uses,” she says. “But I also think we need to be cautious and approach with wisdom.”
As it stands, their policy states that students may only use AI with the express permission of their teachers — each teacher has autonomy to allow or prohibit it for their class or assignments. “So basically, what we’re saying right now is don’t use it unless you’re expressly given permission,” Champion clarifies. “Because kids need that clear boundary.”
For example, students may use AI to brainstorm research points, identify relevant sources for major projects, or search for information, facts, and resources — all with explicit teacher permission.
That boundary aligns with Providence’s larger educational values: students learn best not by shortcuts, but by engaging fully in the process — even when it’s messy or inefficient. Both Champion and Eckert note the value in working hard for something, even if it means making mistakes.
After all, it’s through mistakes that we learn, we evolve. “You know, it’s annoying to sit down and write and edit things,” Champion notes. “It takes time. It’s not efficient. But the best things in life aren’t always efficient, and I think that’s one of the things that we as the adults have to remember.”
At Providence, teachers usually introduce their AI policy at the beginning of the year, making expectations about AI clear as part of the academic integrity policy. If they suspect a student used AI to write something, their response is simple: ask them. Teachers will bring the student in for an honest discussion, asking about the work and whether AI or outside help was used. “And I would say the majority of the time, students are honest about it,” says Champion.
While Providence maintains policies outlining clear consequences for AI misuse, Champion said the emphasis is on understanding and growth. “We really focus on relationship and redemption.” And, she adds, “giving students an opportunity to right their wrongs.”
Champion and Eckert also emphasize the ways in which AI can be used as a positive learning tool. As Champion explains, “I can’t fly kids to the Louvre, but I can give them a virtual experience that allows them to experience art in a specific context that they may not be able to.” She notes that it’s these interactive experiences that truly immerse students in their work, saying, “It’s different than printing it on a page.”
Champion and Eckert acknowledge that, like all of us, they may not have all the answers when it comes to navigating this new, rapidly evolving technology. Still, they’re committed to understanding it. What it really boils down to, Eckert says, “is to shape kids into young capable adults who will be members of society, and training them how to responsibly use technology as part of that.”
See providencesb.org.
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