Education's Elephant in the Room: Teachers Need AI Guidance and Training NOW!

The Urgent Need for AI Literacy

The transformative power of AI in education stands unmatched in our history. While it holds immense potential to enhance student learning and development, this potential can only be realised when both students and teachers understand AI's power, possibilities, and pitfalls. Yet currently, many educators have been left in the lurch, creating an urgent crisis in our educational system that demands immediate attention.

This crisis is particularly acute given the imminent rollout of the first tranche of reformed Leaving Certificate subjects in September 2025. While teachers' unions have made reasonable calls to delay implementation until proper AI training is in place, both the Department of Education and the NCCA appear determined to press ahead with the original timeline. This creates a deeply frustrating position for educators who must somehow implement new curricula while simultaneously grappling with unprecedented AI challenges—all without comprehensive, standardised training.

There's an AI elephant sitting in every Irish classroom, and we can no longer pretend it isn't there. While teachers and students grapple daily with this new reality, educational leadership—the Department of Education, NCCA, and SEC—has acknowledged AI's presence and taken initial steps to address it. However, the scale and speed of AI's impact on education demands a more comprehensive response.

The Reality Behind Last Week's Headlines

While media outlets buzzed last Thursday about the NCCA's announcement regarding AI use in Leaving Certificate projects, they missed a crucial point: this wasn't news at all. For over 13 months, project guidelines across both Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate have contained references to AI usage and plagiarism warnings. The real story isn't the policy—it's the glaring absence of support and training in the year since these guidelines were issued.

AI in Irish Classrooms

In my role delivering AI training sessions to teachers, I've observed a concerning pattern:

• Only 5-10% of teachers report using AI regularly in their practice
• Many are completely unaware of the AI tools their students use daily.
• Most experimented with AI when ChatGPT first launched but weren't impressed—yet as I demonstrate how dramatically AI has improved (or worsened, depending on your perspective) in the interim, their reaction is invariably one of shocked disbelief: "It can do that now?"

Perhaps most revealing is teachers' reaction when I demonstrate Snapchat's My AI feature—a tool countless students access daily. I consistently advise: even if you choose not to use AI yourself, understanding the tools your students use is no longer optional.

The Absence of Clear Guidance

Currently, there exists no official documentation or guidelines on referencing AI platforms from the NCCA, SEC, or Department of Education. While some educators, myself included, have researched international best practices, this critical burden shouldn't fall on individual teachers to figure out for themselves.

Like any teacher of a subject with a project component, I've been familiar with these requirements for some time. In my own subject, History, the current project booklet echoes last year's version and clearly states:

"You must reference and acknowledge all research sources used such as: publications including books, professional journals and government reports; online sources and other types of media; any material generated using artificial intelligence (AI) software or applications; and material from specialist organisations and relevant individuals. To include such material without properly referencing the source will be considered plagiarism."

One would naturally assume such requirements would be accompanied by detailed training and guidance on AI referencing—but that wasn't the case for LC 2024 and still isn't for LC 2025.

When it comes to actually using AI, like last year educators and students face numerous unanswered questions:

• Is simply stating "I used ChatGPT" sufficient, or do we need to include dates of use?
• How do we reference AI platforms without URLs, such as Snapchat's MyAI?
• Should students declare their use of Grammarly for grammar, spelling, and punctuation assistance?
• Is there a list of approved versus prohibited AI platforms?
• Will students and teachers be required to maintain AI logs, as is standard practice in other jurisdictions?

Without clear answers to these practical questions, how can we ensure consistent implementation across schools and subjects?

The stress, confusion, and frustration that all this uncertainty creates cannot be overstated. In History, the current research study component accounts for 20% of the final grade and is completed at the end of sixth year—a significant portion of a student's Leaving Certificate that could be impacted by unclear AI guidelines. Even more concerning is the prospect of 40% project components proposed in the new Leaving Certificate subjects. These projects, set to roll out next September, will be completed during fifth year—making the need for clear guidance even more urgent.

Also, how do we ensure fairness when some students have access to premium AI platforms with advanced capabilities, while others are limited to free versions? This creates a two-tier system where technological advantage amplifies existing educational privileges—students with access to better AI tools, who are often already advantaged by better resources at home and in school, gain an even greater edge over their peers. Those without such access face a double disadvantage: not only are they limited to basic AI tools, but they may also lack the guidance of AI-literate teachers who understand these platforms.

To proceed with such significant curriculum reform in less than ten months' time, while these fundamental issues remain unaddressed, isn't just ill-advised—it's potentially damaging to an entire cohort of students.

The short-term solution is clear: implement a 12-month postponement of these reforms. This delay isn't about resistance to change—it's about ensuring we get this right. This vital breathing space would allow teachers to properly upskill in AI literacy and enable schools to develop equitable approaches to AI integration.

Without such preparation, we risk undermining not only the integrity of these new courses but the very principles of educational fairness. The reforms will shape how our students learn and how we teach for years to come—we must take the time to build proper foundations for their success.

The Path Forward

The challenges we face are clear: uneven teacher preparation, widening educational divides, and risks to assessment integrity. To address these issues and ensure the successful integration of AI in our education system, we need decisive action on four fronts:

1. Mandatory AI literacy training for all educators, properly resourced and standardised nationwide. This training must cover not just basic AI awareness, but practical skills in using, monitoring, and teaching with AI tools. Every teacher, regardless of subject area, needs to understand how AI can be used ethically and effectively in their classroom.
2. Clear, comprehensive guidelines for AI referencing and usage, with practical examples and scenarios. Teachers and students need explicit instructions on how to reference different AI platforms, what constitutes acceptable AI use, and how to maintain academic integrity in an AI-enhanced learning environment.
3. Regular updates and ongoing professional development to keep pace with rapid technological changes. AI technology evolves at an unprecedented rate—what's current today may be obsolete tomorrow. Schools need a structured approach to keeping their staff updated on new developments and their educational implications.
4. A realistic timeline for Leaving Certificate reform that prioritises thorough teacher preparation over arbitrary deadlines. This means implementing a 12-month postponement of the new courses, allowing time for proper teacher training and the development of clear guidelines before students begin these crucial examination years.

Looking Forward

If we implement these essential changes—proper training, clear guidelines, ongoing support, and a realistic timeline—we can build an education system that truly serves our students' futures. One where teachers are confident and competent in guiding AI use, where assessment is fair and equitable regardless of students' resources, and where we prepare young people for a world where AI is an everyday reality.

The AI elephant isn't just in our classrooms anymore—it's sitting at every student's desk. Rather than pretend it isn't there, or worse, ignore the inequities its presence creates, we must acknowledge it, understand it, and ensure every teacher is equipped to work with it effectively. Only then can we transform what might be seen as an educational challenge into an opportunity for all students, not just a privileged few.

The choice facing school leaders, the NCCA, and the SEC is clear: act now with purpose and preparation, or risk widening the educational divide that already exists in our schools. The decisions made in the coming months will define not just the success of these reforms, but the credibility of our assessment system itself.

Our students deserve an education system that prepares them for the AI-enhanced world they'll inherit—but first, we must equip our teachers with the training, guidelines, and support they need for the AI-enhanced world they're already teaching in.

The main responsibility for making this happen lies not with individual teachers, but with those who guide our education system. Educational leaders must now listen to the voices on the front lines: teachers who understand the daily reality of AI in education, unions who advocate for proper preparation time, and most crucially, students themselves who deserve a fair system where their success isn't determined by whether they happen to have a teacher who understands AI. The time to act and listen is now.

#EducationInnovation #AIInEducation #TeacherTraining #IrishEducation #LeavingCertificate #ProfessionalDevelopment

Patrick Hickey is a current post-primary teacher of History and English, with a focus on integrating Artificial Intelligence into the classroom. Patrick has been featured on Irish media outlets such as RTÉ, TV3's "Tonight Show," "The Irish Times" and Newstalk Radio on the area of AI in Education.

Contact Patrick at patrickhickey600@gmail.com for any requests for training, webinars, workshops or keynote speaking or visit the website and complete the registration form on the homepage to avail of AI CPD opportunities.