Ethical guidelines on AI and data in teaching and learning for educators

European Commission Ethical Guidelines

European
Commission
Ethical guidelines on the use of
artificial intelligence (AI) and
data in teaching and learning
for EducatorsManuscript completed in September 2022
The European Commission is not liable for any consequence stemming from the reuse of this publication.
Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2022
@ European Union, 2022

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Print
ISBN 978-92-76-57539-9
doi:10.2766/127030
NC-07-22-649-EN-C

PDF
ISBN 978-92-76-54190-5
doi:10.2766/153756
NC-07-22-649-EN-NAcknowledgements
The guidelines were developed by the European Commission, with the support of the Expert Group on Artificial
Intelligence and Data in Education and Training, led by consultants associated with ECORYS. The Commission would
like to thank the following:

• Agata Majchrowska
• Aleksander Tarkowski
• Ari Alamäki
• Deirdre Butler
• Duuk Baten
• Egon Van den Broek
• Guido Noto La Diega
• Hanni Muukkonen van der Meer
• Inge Molenaar
• Jill-Jênn Vie
• Josiah Kaplan
• Juan Pablo Giraldo Ospino
• Julian Estevez
• Keith Quille
• Lidija Kralj
• Lucilla Crosta
• Maksim Karliuk
• Maria Wirzberger
• Matthew Montebello
• Stephan Vincent-Lancrin
• Tapani Saarinen
• Tobias Rohl
• Viola Schiaffonati
• Vitor Hugo Mendes da Costa Carvalho
• Vladislav SlavovETHICAL GUIDELINES ON THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Ethical Guidelines for Educators

4
Ethical
guidelines5
AND DATA IN TEACHING AND LEARNING FOR EDUCATORS

Contents

Foreword
6
The Context for these Guidelines
8
Digital Education Action Plan
8
Artificial Intelligence and Data Use
10
EU Policy on Artificial Intelligence and Regulatory Framework Proposal
12
Common Misconceptions about AI
12
AI and Data Use Examples in Education
14
Ethical Considerations and Requirements Underpinning the Ethical Guidelines 18
Ethical Considerations
18
Key Requirements for Trustworthy AI
18
Guiding Questions for Educators
19
Guidance for Educators and School Leaders
22< Using the Guiding Questions
22
Planning for Effective Use of AI and Data in School
26
Raising Awareness and Community Engagement
27
Emerging Competences for Ethical use of AI and data
28
Glossary of AI and Data Terms
32
Further Information
386
ETHICAL GUIDELINES ON THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Foreword on AI in Education

From the way we stay informed to the way we make decisions, artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming ubiquitous
in our economy and society. Naturally, it has reached our schools as well. Al in education is no longer a distant
future. It is already changing the way schools, universities and educators work and our children learn. It is making
educational settings more responsive by helping teachers address each learner's specific needs. It is fast becoming
a staple in personalised tutoring and in assessment. And it is increasingly showing its potential to provide valuable
insights in student development. The impact of AI on our education and training systems is undeniable, and will
grow further in the future.

Students and educators
already benefit from AI
in their everyday lives,
in many cases without
being aware of its
presence. Online learning
environments often span
several continents -
often without users being
entirely aware how and
where their data is used.
This raises specific ethical
challenges when using
AI and processing large
amounts of data in education. It goes without saying: we must ensure
that teachers and educators understand the potential AI and big data
can have in education - while being aware of the associated risks.
It is for this reason that I am pleased to share with you the present
Ethical Guidelines on the use of AI and data in teaching and learning
for educators. The Guidelines will undoubtedly help our teachers
and educators reflect on how they can use AI and data in their daily
practices - and empower them to act accordingly.
I am grateful for the valuable contribution of the Expert Group
set up by the European Commission to the preparation of these
Guidelines. This group brought together a wide range of experts: from
practitioners to researchers in AI, data, ethics and education, as well as
representatives of various international organisations, such as UNICEF,
UNESCO and OECD.
The Expert Group offered rich knowledge and expertise building on
the Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI and The Assessment List for
Trustworthy AI (ALTAI), areas that have been already high on EU's
political agenda. Focusing on both the ethics of education and the
ethics of AI and Data, the Group also took into account the proposed
legal framework for AI (Artificial Intelligence Act), the General Data
Protection Regulation (GDPR), and the proposals for a Data Act and
for an EU Declaration on digital rights and principles.
These Guidelines are to be used in schools across Europe and we shall
actively promote them through the Erasmus+ programme. Collectively
or individually, teachers and school leaders will now have a solid
basis to venture out and expand their use of these technologies in a
considerate, safe and ethical way.
These Guidelines, along with their use on the ground, are fundamental
to our ongoing efforts to achieve the European Education Area, while
supporting the work being carried out by EU Member States. The
Guidelines are part of a longer journey, while the EU is negotiating
and preparing for a comprehensive and effective regulatory framework
for trustworthy AI, to be implemented across all sectors in the EU,
including education. And our work does not stop here. As we move
forward, we will continue to develop a better understanding of how to
apply these technologies, allowing educators to be even more inclusive
and pragmatic, especially in primary and secondary education.
AND DATA IN TEACHING AND LEARNING FOR EDUCATORS
7
Therefore, I would invite all European teachers and educators to
take advantage of these guidelines, and to share their feedback
on their practical application and experience, as this will support
our ongoing efforts regarding the digital transition in education.
We shall also strongly benefit from the views and experience of our
pupils, their families, and all stakeholders in the field of education
about the use and impact of AI in their daily work and how to make it
further beneficial while avoiding risks and negative effects to human
rights and our fundamental EU values.
Our joint work on AI and data in education shows a shared commitment
to the education community, to our learners, to their development and
well-being. These Guidelines are an important starting point. It is now
up to all of us to promote them and put them into practice. I am
counting on you.
My warmest thanks to the experts of this Group who made this
happen. Your ideas and dedication come to life in the pages that
follow. Thank you
Villeganzeles
Mariya Gabriel8
ETHICAL GUIDELINES ON THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Context for the Guidelines

Digital Education Action Plan Overview

The Context for these
Guidelines
Digital Education Action Plan
The Digital Education Action Plan (2021-2027) is
the renewed European Union (EU) policy initiative to
support the sustainable and effective adaptation of the
education and training systems of EU Member States
for the digital age.

M
The Digital Education Action Plan:

• offers a long-term strategic vision for high-quality, inclusive and
  accessible European digital education;
• addresses the challenges and opportunities of the COVID-19
  pandemic, which has led to the unprecedented use of technology
  for education and training purposes;
• seeks stronger cooperation at the EU level on digital education
  and underscores the importance of working together across
  sectors to bring education into the digital age;
• presents opportunities, including improved quality and quantity
  of teaching concerning digital technologies, support for the
  digitalisation of teaching methods and pedagogies and
  the provision of infrastructure required for inclusive and resilient
  remote learning.

Digital Education Plan Priorities

9
AND DATA IN TEACHING AND LEARNING FOR EDUCATORS
The Digital Education Plan puts forward two strategic priorities, each of which have a number of actions for the period 2021-2027:
The Digital Education Action Plan (2021-2027)
has two strategic priorities

1. To foster high-perfoming digital education
   ecosystems, we need:
   infrastructure, connectivity and digital equipment
   effective digital capacity planning and development,
   including effective end up-to-date organisational capabilities
   digital-competent and confident educators and education
   & training staff
   high-quality content, user friendly tools and secure
   platforms, respecting privacy and ethical standards
2. To enhance digital skills and competences
   for the digital age:
   .

• support the provisions of basic digital skills and
  competences from an early age:
• digital literacy, including management of information overload
  and recognising disinformation
• computing education
• good knowledge and understanding of data-tensive technologies,
  such as AI
• boost advanced digital skills: enhancing the number of digital
  specialises and of girls and women in digital studies and careers
  Under Priority 1: Fostering the development of a high-performing digital education ecosystem,

the Digital Education Action Plan outlines a set of actions to foster the development of a high-
performing digital education ecosystem. This includes a specific action to develop ethical guidelines
on the use of AI and data in education and training to be shared with educators and school leaders.
Ethical
guidelines10
ETHICAL GUIDELINES ON THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Artificial Intelligence and Data Use

Defining Artificial Intelligence

What is Artificial Intelligence?
Throughout Europe, learners and educators increasingly use Artificial
Intelligence (AI) systems, sometimes without realising it. Search
engines, smart assistants, chatbots, language translation, navigation
apps, online videogames and many other applications use Artificial
Intelligence in our everyday lives. AI systems rely on data, which is
collected in different modalities (e.g. sound, images, text, posts, clicks)
and all together form our digital traces.
AI has great potential to enhance education and training for learners,
educators and school leaders. AI systems are currently helping some
educators to identify specific learning needs, providing learners with
personalised learning experiences, and helping some schools to make
better decisions, so that they can more effectively use the teaching
resources available to them.
As AI systems continue to evolve and data usage increases, it is
of utmost importance to develop a better understanding of their
impact on the world around us, particularly in education and training.
Educators and school leaders need to have at least a basic knowledge
of AI and data usage in order to be able to engage positively, critically,
and ethically with this technology and to properly use it to exploit its
full potential.
The definition of an Artificial Intelligence system (AI system) proposed
in the draft Al Act is "software that is developed with one or more
of the techniques and approaches (listed below) and can, for a
given set of human-defined objectives, generate outputs such as
content, predictions, recommendations, or decisions influencing the
environments it interacts with".
The listed AI techniques and approaches are:

1. Machine learning approaches, including supervised, unsupervised
   and reinforcement learning, using a wide variety of methods
   including deep learning;
2. Logic and knowledge-based approaches, including knowledge
   representation, inductive (logic) programming, knowledge bases,
   inference and deductive engines, (symbolic) reasoning and
   expert systems;
3. Statistical approaches, Bayesian estimation, search and
   optimisation methods.

When we talk about AI systems, we are
referring to software in computers or machines
that are programmed to perform tasks
that usually require human intelligence, e.g.
learning or reasoning. Using data, certain AI
systems can be "trained" to make predictions,
provide recommendations or decisions,
sometimes without any human involvement.