SEATTLE — A bill banning certain uses of artificial intelligence in public schools is moving through the Washington state Legislature.
Senate Bill 5956 implements six bans related to the use of “automated decision-makers.” These prohibitions are:
- Use an automated decision system as the sole or determinative basis for any decision related to the student’s discipline.
- Impose emergency dismissal, suspension or expulsion; referring to law enforcement; or assignment to an alternative education setting based solely on: a prediction, score or classification generated by an automated decision system; or data from school monitoring technology, without independent human investigation or consideration of context.
- Use an automated decision system to generate a risk score or similar predictive classification for an individual student.
- Maintain internal lists or student watch lists based on an automated decision system.
- Enter into a contract with a vendor or school service provider that requires or authorizes the vendor or supplier to engage in these prohibited activities.
- Use biometric data to generate or infer a student’s emotional states, mental health conditions, sexual orientation, gender expression, gender identity, or other sensitive psychological or personal characteristics.
“These tools need to have guardrails,” said bill co-sponsor Sen. T’wina Nobles (D-Fircrest). “Technology is changing so quickly.”
Nobles said one of the intentions of the bill is to ensure that no student is mistreated because of AI technology.
“We want to make sure our systems don’t amplify existing disparities,” she said. “And don’t disproportionately impact students of color, students with disabilities, students who identify as LGBTQ+, or other protected groups.”
Across the country, there have been cases where AI security systems, for example, have impacted a school day.
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For example, in Maryland, the system thought a bag of empty Doritos was a gun, leading to this student being handcuffed.
In Florida, AI technology thought a clarinet was a gun, leading to an hours-long school lockdown.
“False alarms have triggered unnecessary trauma in our teens and children,” said Derick Harris of the Black Education Strategy Roundtable.
But the legislation is not intended to ban the use of AI in public schools, only to ensure that the work done by AI always includes a human element.
“The data points may come from technology, but the conclusion drawn from them and the analysis of the data should not be done by the machine,” said Sen. Lisa Wellman (D-Mercer Island). Wellman also serves as chair of the Senate on Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee and co-sponsor of the bill.
At its first hearing, two supporters of the bill testified in committee, and no opponents.
The bill is scheduled for an executive session in committee on Thursday, where it could be voted on, amended, or not advanced/amended at all.