Quieting the Noise and Finding Purpose amid the AI in Education Hype

By Susana Tomaz – Futures Education and AI Lead, Westlake Girls High School, and IRCAI Fellow. 

What the Kea Can Teach Us About AI in Schools

There’s no denying it. AI in education is moving at lightning speed. Every week, a new tool promises to revolutionise education. It’s exciting, yes, but also overwhelming. And in this whirlwind of innovation, educators face a subtle but very real risk: being distracted by the shimmer.

In Aotearoa, the kea—our very intelligent, curious native alpine parrot is known for its fascination with shiny objects. Similarly, in the fast-moving world of AI in education, we can find ourselves drawn, just like the kea, we too risk becoming so captivated by the gleam of new AI tools that we lose sight of what really matters: deep, human-centred learning that nurtures relationships, curiosity, and critical thinking.

Image generation through ChatGPT using the Prompt: A photo-realistic image of a kea, New Zealand’s intelligent alpine parrot, flying inside a modern classroom. The kea is mid-flight, wings spread wide, and it carries a set of three shiny silver keys in its beak. Each key is clearly engraved with the words “AI”, “EDUCATION”, and “INTENTION”. Below, a realistic classroom scene unfolds with students and a teacher. The setting is naturally lit, and the atmosphere feels authentic and grounded in real-world education, contrasting with the symbolic flight of the kea above.

School-Wide AI Integration: Insights from a NZ High School

As Futures Education and AI Lead at Westlake Girls’, I knew from my Master’s research, we had to dive into AI integration with a clear strategy if we were to create a sandbox for safe, intentional experimentation guided by a human-centric, cognitive, and pedagogical approach, ensuring technology enhances rather than replaces meaningful learning experiences. We recruited AI champs per department to build personalised strategies to meet the needs of the different learning areas and to help us map AI curriculum across the school.

In collaboration with our IT manager, we conducted a thorough risk assessment of AI tools, prioritising security, transparency, and data protection by selecting a few for experimentation. We implemented strict privacy measures, including cybersecurity guardrails, anonymisation practices and parental consent protocols, to ensure student data is safeguarded at every step. Clear guidelines were developed for teachers and students, and the latter were shared with parents. To ensure transparency and build trust, we wrote to parents and hosted a session for parents to ask questions, understand the measures we put in place to mitigate risk and protect their children’s privacy, and feel confident in providing informed consent. More importantly, it enabled us to share the rationale behind our proactive approach, especially in a national context where most schools have yet to develop an AI policy.

We embedded both the UNESCO AI Competency Frameworks and the SAIL Framework for Education to establish baseline data and measure growth in AI literacy among staff and students. Teachers remain the pedagogical leads, supported through ongoing professional learning to evolve as metacognition coaches over the year. These frameworks not only guided our approach but also enabled us to track impact over time.

Are we unknowingly contributing to a dystopian future of students isolated behind screens—or are we using AI intentionally to create more time for what truly matters: deeper human connection, real-world learning, and relationship-driven education?

With this foundation in place, we shifted from policy to practice by establishing baseline data for AI literacy and building it school-wide. Term 2 marks a new chapter: building AI literacy among students, while continuing to deepen teacher capability. Meanwhile, teachers are exploring AI through a pedagogical and metacognitive lens, designing learning experiences that encourage students to think critically, evaluate AI outputs, and reflect on their use, considering whether it supports the purpose of their learning and deepens understanding. We have started some pilot studies and gathering impact evidence of case studies of AI use. We are drawing on resources from the new Stanford’s GenAI Repository for K–12, a curated trusted collection of research and insights,to support the effective use of generative AI in schools. It forms part of the Stanford Generative AI for Education Hub, a valuable resource for School leaders, educators and EdTech. Another very recent exciting development is the OpenAI Academy, just launched,  is a free, global resource hub designed to enhance AI literacy by providing educational materials, tools, and best practices. In the New Zealand context, the AI Education Community of Practice is helping ensure more teachers can access expert-led AI learning opportunities for free, grounded in local needs. This initiative is a key part of the AI Forum NZ’s AI Blueprint for Education working group, supported by Teachers Development Aotearoa.

AI begins to reduce administrative load, we are asking: how do we reinvest that time? For us, the answer is clear. We want to use it to strengthen what AI cannot replace: deeper human interaction, relationship-driven education, and real-world, authentic learning, ensuring that more New Zealand teachers can access expert-led AI learning opportunities for free.


Listening to Who Matters Most: The students

A critical but often overlooked piece in this puzzle is the student voice. The Children’s AI Manifesto, a compelling reminder that students are not just passive users of technology, they are co-creators of its future. If we are serious about future-ready education, then the student voice must be embedded from the outset. At Westlake, we have begun that process. We are involving students in shaping how AI is introduced and used. We are creating opportunities for ethical discussions, collaborative projects, and feedback loops that acknowledge students as key stakeholders in our AI journey.

In a time of rapid technological change, it’s easy to be swept up in the excitement of innovation. But meaningful AI integration in schools requires more than tools—it demands intentionality, reflection, and a deep commitment to our learners. As educators, we must stay anchored in pedagogy, guided by metacognition, and attuned to the voices of our students. The kea reminds us not to be distracted by what glitters, but to stay focused on what matters most: nurturing curiosity, connection, and critical thinking in the age of AI. If you’re exploring this journey too, I would love to connect. You can reach me at stomaz@westlakegirls.school.nz  or book a time to chat here.