It’s Thursday, September 3. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: The AI takeover is closer than you think. The activists choosing goose lives over human ones. The secret lives of American leaders. And much more.
But first: Does AI belong in the classroom?
It’s back-to-school season. As parents and students reacclimate to early mornings and nights full of homework, one subject is top of mind: artificial intelligence.
AI’s capabilities are expanding by the day, transforming the educational landscape. On Wednesday, New York City public schools—the largest district in the country—announced that it will ban the use of AI for elementary and middle school students. Other districts may follow. But should they? Does AI help or hurt students? What about teachers? And how can we use the technology productively—if that’s even possible?
To shed light on these questions, we reached out to people on the front lines: two high school English teachers.
First up is Deb Eaton, a teacher in Pennsylvania who banned AI for her students three years ago. Today, she explains why—and why she believes other teachers should do the same.
Louisiana teacher Rod Naquin disagrees. He uses AI and encourages his students to do the same. Educators who refuse to integrate AI productively into their classrooms, he writes, are missing a profound opportunity to reshape education for the better.
Together, Deb and Rod illuminate the stakes of one of the most consequential debates in education today, from the best vantage point possible: the inside.
—Jillian Lederman
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