Teachers Union Puts Anthropic On A Leash Over Student Data

An artificial intelligence giant promised teachers unions that it would not mine children’s data at school.

Anthropic signed a memorandum of agreement with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) Tuesday to legally enforce safety and privacy measures that are transparent for schools and families, according to an AFT press release. The AFT’s National AI Safety & Privacy Standard addresses parents’ concerns about the potential harms AI poses to children as tech companies push their AI tools into classrooms.

The agreement requires that student data cannot be sold, teachers are responsible for making students’ educational decisions, and transparent information is sent to schools and parents about AI companies’ products, the press release stated.

Randi Weingarten, president of the AFT, outlined a 10-point plan to improve K-12 education in a speech on May 27, in which she called for a bans on screen use and student-facing AI for kindergarten and elementary students, as well as a ban on chatbot companions for children under 16 years old.

“These agreements are always too little, too late,” Michael Marinaccio, executive director of the Center for Responsible Technology, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Excessive screen use has been wreaking havoc on K-12 schools for the past decade.”

“‘Student-facing AI’ in classrooms is tantamount to child abuse and should be totally banned through at least grade 12,” Marinaccio added.

Marinaccio also argued that, rather than putting students and their education first, the deal is structured to shield teachers and corporations from lawsuits.

Another parent advocate was more optimistic about the deal.

“I think this is a positive step in the right direction,” Nicole Runyon, a psychotherapist and parent coach, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “I think we need to defer to teachers on this.”