State schools falling behind in new AI digital divide - new Sutton Trust research
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New research out today reveals a rapidly emerging AI digital divide
in the UK's education system, with private schools outpacing state
schools in benefiting from these tools. And among state schools,
those with highest proportions of disadvantaged pupils are falling
behind those with more affluent intakes in adopting AI. A new
report by the Sutton Trust, Artificial advantage?, shows that
teachers in private schools are more than twice as likely to have
received formal...Request free trial
New research out today reveals a rapidly emerging AI digital divide in the UK's education system, with private schools outpacing state schools in benefiting from these tools. And among state schools, those with highest proportions of disadvantaged pupils are falling behind those with more affluent intakes in adopting AI. A new report by the Sutton Trust, Artificial advantage?, shows that teachers in private schools are more than twice as likely to have received formal training in AI than state school teachers (45% vs 21%). They are also significantly more likely to have received informal training compared to state school teachers (77% vs 45%). Teachers in schools rated as ‘outstanding' by Ofsted were more than three times more likely to have had formal training (35%) than in one with a ‘requires improvement' or ‘inadequate' rating (11%). Overall, private schools are ahead of the game on setting AI policies, dedicating staff to oversee its use, and providing staff training and resources compared to state schools. Inequalities are also developing within the state system. Schools with the most affluent intakes were more likely to report having had formal (26% vs 18%) and informal (54% vs 41%) training than those with the least affluent intakes. Overall, nearly a quarter (24%) of state school teachers said they were not at all confident using AI tools, compared to 15% in private schools. Most teachers are now using AI in schools to some extent. The Sutton Trust found that 62% of all teachers had used this technology at least once within the previous month, while only 16% of teachers said they never use AI. However, private school teachers are more likely to use AI tools at least once a day (18% vs 11%). And only 8% of private school teachers do not use it, compared to 17% in state schools. And given the extra training and resources, private schools are benefiting the most from the advantages of AI, particularly when it comes to time saving. Across all schools, AI tools were most widely used by teachers for lesson planning and preparation (44%). However, private school teachers were more likely than their state school counterparts to use AI for writing pupil reports (29% vs 11%), creating assessments (24% vs 14%), communicating with parents (19% vs 11%), marking (12% vs 7%) and continuing professional development (CPD) (14% vs 8%). This suggests that private school teachers are more likely to have integrated AI across different aspects of their work. The uneven use of these tools across different schools raises concerns about fairness and inconsistencies in how pupils are taught, and how schools provide feedback to pupils and parents. There are also significant issues regarding oversight of the use of AI across the education system. Private schools are three times more likely to have an AI strategy than state schools (27% vs 9%). And within the state sector schools graded as ‘outstanding' by Ofsted were three times more likely than schools rated ‘requires improvement' or ‘inadequate' (13% vs 4%). This raises questions about how fairly these tools are being used across different schools. Having a staff member responsible for AI, and having a clear strategy and guidelines for its use, are essential to enabling safe and effective use of these tools. The Sutton Trust is calling on the Government to tackle the digital divide among pupils to improve their access to the benefits of AI, for example by providing all students eligible for Pupil Premium with devices, to allow them to work effectively outside of the school gates. Additional training and guidance on the use of AI should be given to school leaders, and each school should be required to have a senior member of staff with responsibility for AI. Schools should carefully monitor the use of AI by students. Where any socio-economic gaps in access and use begin to emerge, this should be tackled, for example by using Pupil Premium funding to help pupils access AI-related programmes and initiatives. The Government must more closely monitor any inequalities in access and use of these tools between schools. Commenting, Nick Harrison, CEO of the Sutton Trust, said: ‘It's startling how rapidly an AI digital divide is opening up in schools. This is a crucial time in integrating AI tools into teaching, yet private schools, and some of the most affluent state schools, are already forging ahead in a sort of digital wild west. If this isn't quickly tackled head on, schools serving the most disadvantaged pupils risk falling further behind. ‘These tools can provide a range of benefits to overworked teachers, but their use is spread unevenly, with inequalities in training and appropriate guidance and monitoring. If action isn't taken to close these widening gaps, access to AI risks becoming the next major barrier to opportunity for disadvantaged young people. The type of school you go to shouldn't determine your chances of benefiting from AI in education.' Ends Notes to Editors:
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