Why is AI being Introduced in UK Primary Schools?

Under new Labour plans, AI will soon be used in primary schools to assess children’s reading skills.

The Department for Education (DfE) is funding the development of an AI tool to test six and seven-year-olds.

Using machine learning and speech recognition, it will listen to students reading from a screen and provide feedback to teachers.

Developers say the tool could reduce the time teachers spend assessing reading skills by 93%.

Explaining the reason for AI’s use in schools, a government spokesman said:

“The tool is being developed to be used by teachers only to help reduce their workload.

“Reading is the cornerstone of learning, and we are clear the tool will not disrupt the vital role teachers play when listening to children read.”

The spokesman added that the technology will not be used by children unsupervised and that tests will still be administered by teachers or classroom staff.

However, the tool’s developers suggested it could eventually allow students to read alone, saving schools even more time and money.

The DfE has awarded a £50,000 contract to the Fischer Family Trust (FFT), an educational non-profit, to create a prototype.

The tool will record pupils reading aloud, transcribe their words, and assess comprehension automatically, eliminating the need for manual teacher marking.

FFT said it hopes the tool will reduce the time teachers spend assessing each child from 90 minutes per year to just six minutes.

The tool could eventually evolve into a virtual assistant for children to use at home – potentially replacing parents in helping with reading practice.

Currently, the tool is designed for small groups of six to ten pupils using laptops under a teacher’s supervision. Despite its potential, ministers remain cautious.

The spokesman continued: “Regardless of what the scope of the tool and the developer’s ideas are for wider use, the DfE is categorically not planning to use this or any AI tool to administer reading tests.”

The development comes amid a staffing crisis in schools, where rising class sizes and inflation are making it harder to recruit teachers.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has pledged to recruit 6,500 new teachers to address the shortages.

The AI reading assessment is one of several tools being introduced as part of the Government’s plan to reduce teacher workload.

Other DfE-funded AI tools include automated marking for subjects such as history and science, and observation software for early-years providers caring for children under five.