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Algebra problems are not always easy to solve.聽

Sometimes a misstep in solving a complex equation comes down to a minor error in the third part of a seven-part equation.

But with artificial intelligence, students (and their parents helping at home) could have a step-by-step breakdown of their algebra equations. AI can help show steps toward the answer, with detailed feedback from videos for each step of the way, all in the matter of seconds.

Being able to provide education about AI is one of Horry County Schools' goals as the technology advances.

Horry County Schools Superintendent Clifford Jones says he believes HCS can be a leader in using artificial intelligence in a safe, secure and meaningful way.

鈥淲hen you put the student at the center of every decision you make," Jones said, "the urgency of that decision is tenfold when you think that this child only has this time in their educational journey to be in this moment. So what can we do, right now, to make sure that student has what they need to be successful for their future, not our present? That鈥檚 the whole proposition.鈥�

Like all school districts across the country, HCS is working to navigate the sometimes-choppy waters that come with the boom of AI. It's an unprecedented time 鈥� especially in the education world.

For every good opportunity that the new technology presents, there exists a concerning element that the tool could be used in a negative way. In education, this balance of opportunity and concern is at the forefront of the conversation.

That challenge is not unknown for Jones and his staff.

HCS wants to be a leader in the area of artificial intelligence. And while they will acknowledge that AI can bring along some challenges, Jones says he wants to ensure his students are learning with the highest level of innovation possible.

鈥淲e need to take that urgent position on all of these issues 鈥� whether it鈥檚 AI, literacy, numeracy, whatever it is 鈥� to be sure we are impacting that student鈥檚 trajectory today, not waiting until tomorrow,鈥� Jones said of AI application.

A leader in AI

When Jones was going through the application process for the superintendent position, he said he was encouraged to see HCS was already taking a forward-thinking approach to the world of artificial intelligence.

The district created a position statement specifically centered around the usage of AI, which highlighted HCS鈥� intention to train teachers and prepare students for the integration of artificial intelligence in the classroom, something that has taken place rapidly over the course of the 2024-25 school year.

Teachers are using new tools to help with lesson planning and instruction that is often tailored more to students, while the district has loosened restrictions on artificial intelligence websites on the school network to allow students to dip into the AI world.

Jones said learning of the district鈥檚 focus on the 鈥渉uman side鈥� of AI 鈥� including making sure the burden on teachers was lessened 鈥� was a highlight during his application process.

鈥淸AI] is not just the answer to a question," he said. "You have to review. You have to internalize. And you have to bring your own expertise and experiences for it to make sense in a broader context. To see that on display as a candidate, and now as the superintendent, is something that really fits my own values related to AI.鈥�

Lee James, the interim chief academics officer for the district, has been helping the district lead the charge when it comes to AI implementation.

His and the team鈥檚 question from the start of the AI boom was simple. How would the district react and adapt to the ever-changing world of AI technology when there was no precedent set on how to handle the new tools that were being put into the fingertips of every student and teacher with access to the internet?

鈥淚t鈥檚 new and fast-evolving," James said. "So we had to start with defining what AI is and educating them on both what it could be used for and how it could be effective in the classroom. Then, it was looking at some of the pitfalls. That was first and foremost鈥�

鈥淎fter we developed the position statement, one thing we needed to do was equip teachers first. So they know how to use it. If they were going to lead students through the AI process, we needed to equip them to do that. So, we offered professional development to every teacher in the county, which is quite a big number.鈥�

The district has done just that, finishing up training for all teachers across the district.

That training has been broad, but it has been intensely focused. Teachers have been exposed to various ways of using education-specific AI for personalization, a key element in this new ever-changing world.

Teachers were trained in areas like creating rubrics, designing projects and, perhaps most importantly, using AI to tailor lessons and strategies to individual students. Rather than using a widely known tool like ChatGPT, the district has utilized education-based models to help teachers connect individually and personally with their students.

Jones said that approach has been notably helpful.

鈥淲hen you have an education tool, you can do a little bit more closed-language searches. And those can be more South Carolina, more education based, more research based, more evidence based. So, it鈥檚 really giving you more higher-quality results versus more generic results,鈥� Jones described.

鈥淲hen you have ChatGPT, you鈥檙e going to get things called hallucinations. Those are in there because of what it鈥檚 pulling from. So, we have to, number one, give teachers and students knowledge that [hallucinations] are a possible outcome, that鈥檚 why you need the human. But number two, how can we give them a tool that lessens that?鈥�

James says the district鈥檚 focus has been using artificial intelligence to help supplement student work, not replace it.

鈥淚 think a lot of times, whenever people think of AI, they think of ChatGPT. Which, that is a generative form of AI. If you tell it to answer a question, it does it. If you tell it to write a paper, it does it. But we鈥檙e not looking at necessarily using a tool like that,鈥� James said.

鈥淭here are other AI tools that can be used in the classroom that can help kids with adapting their writing without doing their writing for them. It will sort of coach them through the writing process鈥� it鈥檚 limitless. So we aren鈥檛 necessarily going to be rolling out ChatGPT across our district, but we鈥檒l be using tools that are going to support our kids鈥� learning in the educational environment once they have exposure to it and know how to use it correctly.鈥�

A human-centered approach

Jones said he understands that artificial intelligence is here, and it鈥檚 here to stay. That鈥檚 why he wants to do everything in his power to make sure that HCS leads the way.

However, he hears concerns about the potential pitfalls of AI.

Nationwide, as many praise the emergence of the new technology and get excited about its potential usage, others understand that the tools have the potential to be very problematic, especially in and around education.

Plagiarism, undoubtedly, is at the heart of the concerns surrounding the new technology. But Jones continues to run full-steam ahead to tackle AI.

鈥淲e can provide the right boundaries for teachers so it is selecting the most evidence-based strategies to get the learning to the students with the most impactful methodologies,鈥� Jones said.

On plagiarism, he continued: 鈥淚 need us to understand that plagiarism has been in our Code of Conduct since we have ever had a Code of Conduct. The application of plagiarism and the understanding of plagiarism is now used in an AI context. Taking somebody else鈥檚 work, which AI is, and making it look like yours, that鈥檚 the most traditional use of plagiarism that I am aware of, and that鈥檚 against the rules.鈥�

He noted that while those challenges very much exist, HCS will work to apply 鈥渢he moral and ethical standards鈥� to a current AI-driven environment.

James, like Jones, hopes to emphasize a simple message: While the new world of technology brings with it exciting and never-before-seen possibilities, the goal of implementing AI across the district is not to replace teachers.

In fact, it鈥檚 the exact opposite.

鈥淭his is human-centered,鈥� James said. 鈥淚t will never replace a teacher. Even when [the information] comes out, we train the teacher to really heavily scrutinize that. To look through it, make adjustments and make changes. They can even prompt AI to include or exclude something. The teacher is making the decision. AI is not.鈥�

The human-centered nature of artificial intelligence in local schools can be seen in some of the ways teachers are using the technology. Some of the built-in modules in tools that HCS educators currently have access to can create dozens of sets of materials for each student in the classroom with the click of a button. What used to be a 鈥渕onumental task,鈥� James described, can now be done with the click of a button.

Advanced rubric generators? They鈥檙e there.

Lesson plan creators? They鈥檙e there.

The education-specific tools are just starting to be understood, which is an exciting place to be, Jones said.

But the superintendent, too, wants his message to be heard loud and clear: The advantages of the new tools will never replace the value of a teacher either.

鈥淭eaching is built on relationship building,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淎nd AI is never going to build a relationship. Teaching is a social enterprise. Teaching is me understanding who you are and what I can do best to support your learning. That is the art of teaching.鈥�

And his message for those teachers?

The new emphasis on AI won鈥檛 be an overload situation across Horry County Schools. Rather, Jones said it could be a way to continue to increase efficiencies in the classroom during lesson planning, in-class instruction and more.

鈥淔or our teachers, this can鈥檛 be an extra thing,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淥ur teachers鈥� plates are way too full. This has to be something that augments what they are doing. Or we have to decide, as a district, what to take off. We can鈥檛 keep, in education, just adding onto the plates of our teachers. This provides us an opportunity to really deprogram some things that aren鈥檛 working just as much as we are creating some efficiencies.鈥�

A future of possibilities

As teachers learn how to use the new technology and students are trained how to use it ethically and efficiently, there are going to be bumps in the road. Even Jones admits that the early implementation has been clunky, given how quickly the technology is changing.

However, HCS is clear in that 鈥� while it has a long way to go to achieve what it would like to with artificial intelligence 鈥� the district believes a bright future awaits.

Jones has plans to likely put an 鈥淎I statement鈥� as a universal resource in each syllabus for high school classes, so students understand what expectations are at the start of every course. The district is also looking into building an AI ethics course to be taken at all high schools, which will further help the district push the responsible education piece of the equation.

Jones said HCS is striving to build the education environment with the professional future of current students in mind.

鈥淥ne of the things that is really important to me, not only just related to AI, is that we educate our kids for their future, not our adults鈥� present,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淎 lot of times, we build school for the adults now, which is missing the mark in the mind of the superintendent.

鈥淲e have to educate kids for their futures, and that is hard. That鈥檚 hard for me as an adult. But, I know that AI is not going anywhere. I know that I need to make sure that they have that exposure and that they ask themselves those tough questions.鈥�

Even Jones himself gets excited about the world of artificial intelligence, and he is eager to talk about the ways it can help students, teachers and families.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just like if you have a a teacher or a tutor next to you. Those types of applications are here. That鈥檚 not the future. That鈥檚 not me looking into the future. That鈥檚 here鈥� Which is great,鈥� Jones said.

鈥淗ow many parents feel disconnected to be able to help their students solve some of this higher-level math when they aren鈥檛 a math person? Well now, you can have these other tools, generated by AI, not only get you to an answer, but they will also give you step-by-step information with videos to support where the misstep took place.鈥�

As exciting and saturated as the new world is, there are still plenty of questions to be asked 鈥� one only a human, not a computer, can answer.

How will the district make sure students are using AI for good?

What limits will teachers set on usage of the new tech tools?

How will plagiarism via AI be specifically targeted?

Challenges exist, but both Jones and James aren鈥檛 running away from them. Rather, with a student-centered approach, they are hoping that Horry County Schools can continue to expose students, teachers and the community to the benefits of using artificial intelligence effectively and responsibly.

鈥淚t鈥檚 here,鈥� James said of AI as a whole. 鈥淚t exists. Simply ignoring it is not going to help. It鈥檚 not going to help [the students] grow鈥� It鈥檚 what鈥檚 best for our students. We saw this as a need, and we knew that we needed to jump on it.鈥�