UK government wants the AI to eat your homework

The UK government has announced the launch of a new scheme that will encourage the building of new generative AI tools to help teachers when they’re planning lessons or marking homework.

This will involve the creation of a 'data store' for education data including the national curriculum, guidance for teachers, lesson plans and more. The £3m ($3.96m) data store will help tech companies build AI tools that teachers can trust to help in their work by making this data machine readable.

In addition to the data store the announcement includes the setting up of a £1m ($1.32m) catalyst fund to get companies to quickly use this data to produce tools that can help teachers. The cash will be awarded to those who bring forward the best ideas to put the data into practice to reduce teacher workload. Each winner will build an AI tool to help teachers specifically with feedback and marking by March 2025, with applications opening on 9th September. There’s also a Department for Education commitment to publish a safety framework on AI in education later this year.

Science Secretary Peter Kyle says, "This is the first of many projects that will transform how we see and use public sector data. We will put the information we hold to work, using it in a safe and responsible way to reduce waiting lists, cut backlogs and improve outcomes for citizens across the country."

Department for Education tests, published today, show that providing generative AI models with this kind of data can increase accuracy to 92 percent, up from 67 percent when no targeted data was provided to a large language model.

Chris Goodall, a teacher and head of digital education in the Bourne Education Trust, says:

AI has been a hugely powerful tool for me and my colleagues at the Bourne Education Trust. It allows us to create engaging, personalised learning experiences for our students while also significantly reducing the time taken to create them. Personally, I've used AI to quickly generate scaffolded activities, adapt materials for students with special educational needs, and create more engaging lessons that are accessible to all. The time saved allows school staff to focus on what matters most, interacting with students and providing individualised feedback and support.

The content store will take this to the next level by offering easy access to high quality evidence based and legally compliant education materials. Developed with input from educators it supports effective teaching practices and fosters collaboration and innovation.

The department has also published new research on attitudes of pupils and parents to the use of AI in education. This shows shows parents want teachers to use generative AI to enable them to have more time helping children in the classroom with face-to-face teaching.

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