Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial Intelligence Guiding Framework

OUR PURPOSE: Use AI responsibly to enhance learning, improve operations, and uphold trust.

OUR WHY: Prepared to Excel – AI supports people, learning, and decision-making.

Guiding Principles

Student & Human Centered: AI enhances learning and work; people remain accountable.
Respect & Integrity: Academic honesty, professionalism, and ethical use are non-negotiable.
Equity & Opportunity: AI expands access and support while addressing bias and gaps.
Transparency: Clear communication about when and how AI is used.
Privacy & Security: Student, staff, and division data are protected at all times.
Excellence & Growth: AI use is continuously evaluated and improved.

Where is AI used?

Instructional: Planning, differentiation, feedback, and AI literacy.
Operational: Data analysis, efficiency, decision support, and communication.

What AI is Not

A replacement for teachers or staff.
A shortcut for learning.
A tool used without oversight or approval.

Our Commitment

Stafford Schools will use AI responsibly, ethically, and strategically to inspire and empower every student – and every staff member – to excel.

Academic Integrity Guidelines

Use of Generative AI Regulation

Stafford Schools Code of Student Conduct Regulation 2401-R1, includes language about dishonesty in assigned work. According to the regulation:

The School Board of Stafford County recognizes the potential benefits of using generative artificial intelligence (AI) in the classroom. However, the board also recognizes the potential risks of using generative AI, such as the misuse of generative AI for plagiarism or the impact its unguided use might have on the development of our students. See Regulation 3114-R (Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence).

There are certain circumstances in which the use of AI to complete assignments could be considered plagiarism. If a student is asked to create original work to demonstrate their learning, and instead uses generative AI to generate an output and submit it to the teacher as if it were their own, the student is violating the division’s academic integrity guidelines.

With the advent of generative AI, teachers need to engage students in open conversations about expectations around the use of generative AI on assigned work. Students need to understand when outputs from generative AI are not considered original work. Students also need to understand why producing original work is an important part of the learning and assessment process.

By engaging students in open dialogue about the appropriate use of AI, teachers will help students develop a deeper understanding of how generative AI can be used ethically.

Artificial Intelligence and Original Work

What is original work?

Original work is something created by an individual that is unique and not copied from someone else.

Why is original work important?

Creating original work is both an opportunity to learn and a way to demonstrate learning. Through creating original work, students are learning to be creative, think critically, and communicate with others. The process of producing original work also allows students to make sense of new knowledge and practice new skills. By reviewing students’ original work, teachers gain important insights into what students know and are able to do.

How should students incorporate the work of others into their original work?

Original work can be informed or inspired by the work of others. For example, researching a topic and writing a report on that topic requires drawing on and learning from others’ work. Creating art inspired by or in the style of another artist is also an example of using others’ work as a foundation for original work.

Creating original work can involve taking existing research, ideas, or arguments and presenting them in a unique way. When producing original work inspired or informed by the work of others, students will:

Research: Familiarize themselves with existing scholarly work.
Incorporate Existing Ideas: Use existing information but present it in their own words and style.
Add Value: Offer new perspectives, opinions, or dimensions to the discussion.
Maintain Integrity: Properly acknowledge sources to uphold academic standards.
Reflect: Review their work to ensure ideas are presented in an original way and proper credit is given to the ideas of others.

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is defined by Merriam Webster as stealing the words or ideas of someone else and passing it off as your own. Using ideas from another source without properly crediting that source is plagiarism.

Is content generated by AI considered original work?

While the content generated by AI is original (not directly copied from another source), it is not the original work of the user who prompted the AI. Meaning, a student who prompts AI to provide an output cannot take that output and claim it as their original work.

When students use AI to generate content to support their work or learning, the use of AI must be cited or disclosed like any other source.

Is there a way for teachers to detect work generated by AI?

While there are tools available on the market that claim to detect if text was generated by AI, real-world tests of those systems have shown them to be unreliable. While some providers claim a false positive rate as low as 4%, independent researchers have found false positive rates as high as 20%. Those rates can be even higher for students who are English Learners or neurodivergent. Because of these inconsistent results, Stafford Schools does not recommend that teachers use AI detection tools to determine if work submitted by students was potentially generated by AI.

Using AI for Schoolwork

AI can be a helpful learning tool when used appropriately. Depending on the assignment, teachers may allow students to use AI to brainstorm ideas, receive feedback, or support the learning process. In other situations, students may be expected to complete work independently so they can demonstrate their own understanding and skills.

To help students use AI appropriately, Stafford Schools has developed Citing AI Use guidelines. These guidelines explain when AI may be used for assignments, how students should acknowledge (Student AI Use Request Form) and/or cite AI assistance when required, and why transparency is an important part of academic integrity.

Levels of AI Usage by Office of Communication

Citing and Disclosing AI Use by Office of Communication

Privacy and Data Protection

Stafford County Public Schools is committed to safeguarding student data and protecting sensitive information. When using generative AI, teachers, staff, and students must be mindful of any potential risk of exposing student or division information.

Consumer versions of generative AI models use data entered by users to continue to train their models. Stafford Schools staff and students should not use consumer versions (free or paid) of any generative AI tool for Stafford Schools purposes.

Examples of these consumer services include OpenAI’s Chat-GPT, Anthropic’s Claude (unless purchased by the division), and personal versions of Microsoft Copilot or Google Gemini.

Instead, staff and students should only use supported tools that are provided by the division. These tools have protections in place to ensure that data entered by users is not used to train the underlying models or is shared with third parties. Currently, all Stafford Schools staff have access to Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini, and Notebook LM (login with your Stafford Schools account). Staff also have access to generative AI features in Canva and Adobe Creative Cloud Express (login to these services through Stafford Schools GO). Staff should never share identifiable information about students in any generative AI tool.

While Stafford Schools provides access to generative AI tools for students, teachers can model how to protect personal information in generative AI tools and have discussions with students about how they can safeguard their information if they are exploring generative AI models.

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