Lessons Learned at the Leading Educators x Playlab  Design Sprint

Human ingenuity has continually pushed the boundaries of possibility—from eradicating diseases to creating ways of relating to our world that were once only imagined. As we navigate today’s complexities, generative AI (GenAI) offers new opportunities to enhance teaching and learning and ensure all students are ready to thrive in a rapidly changing future.

Educators are already leading the way, testing new tools and experimenting with GenAI to enhance productivity, expand access to information, and find creative ways to connect with students.

However, support is still needed.

• A recent survey by Educators for Excellence found that while over one-third of teachers are using AI in the classroom, only 14% feel confident using it, and 58% seek additional training.
• The most popular area in which teachers would like more training is on how to use AI to lesson plan and to differentiate instruction.

What will it take to turn the potential of AI in education into practice? Leading Educators and Playlab hosted an AI Design Sprint at MIT Media Lab at the end of August to tackle that question with hands-on experimentation.

Over two days, we brought together over 100 educators, students, district leaders, peer organizations, and philanthropic support organizations to explore practical applications of AI in transforming teaching and learning. I spoke with Daniel Obregon, Chief Partnerships Officer; Sandra Jin, Director of Innovation; and Amanda Drenth, Director of Science Strategy at Leading Educators, about the key lessons they are taking away from the experience. 

Seeing the possibilities in GenAI 

While AI holds many possibilities for transforming teaching and learning, leveraging AI is not the destination itself. Our goal is to develop tools and identify practices that students and teachers can use to enhance what and how they learn rather than developing tools primarily for administering and organizing traditional school functions. 

The design sprint was abuzz with a diverse set of ideas and lived experiences with technology.

At one table, a group of classroom teachers, instructional coaches, and funders delved into brainstorming a tool to help district leaders navigate state-level policies.

At another table, edtech entrepreneurs and high school students collaborated on designing an AI-powered chatbot to facilitate rich math discourse, aiming to address persistent gaps in math mindsets and knowledge. Meanwhile, professionals from various social good organizations collaborated to develop instructional coaching tools to complement the uniquely human elements of direct support classroom teachers.

Daniel Obregon, Chief Partnerships Officer for Leading Educators, shares,

It was incredible to see so many educators and system leaders embracing how they could do more, do better, and do new with AI that they never imagined before.”

This concept of setting goals for technology integration focused on “doing more” (adding capacity), “doing better” (increasing effectiveness), and “doing new” (expanding possibilities) is at the heart of Leading Educators’ Value Add of Technology on Teaching (VATT) framework.

Educators, schools, and districts of all sizes have the opportunity to leverage Gen AI to:

1. “Do More”: Increase access to necessary instructional and skill-building resources as well as institute time-saving practices.
2. “Do Better”: Strengthen the impact on student thinking and engagement, the quality of instructional strategies, and responsiveness to individual needs.
3. “Do New”: Push the boundaries of the status quo and invite creativity and innovation into practice.

 Tools like Playlab Can Democratize Classroom Innovation

School systems are increasingly investing thousands of dollars in a vast array of edtech platforms and applications, yet the impact of these tools on classroom outcomes remains unclear. Playlab AI, a nonprofit dedicated to democratizing AI, is disrupting that. By prioritizing access over profit, Playlab ensures that educators, students, and anyone passionate about learning can explore GenAI’s potential without financial barriers or coding knowledge.

This commitment opens the door for a wide range of creative possibilities. At the design sprint, attendees used Playlab to build chatbots for practicing difficult conversations, tools for generating IEP timelines, and project-based learning concepts connected to students’ interests.

This two-day design sprint with Playlab.ai showed me that you don’t necessarily need to be a technical wizard to build an app,” shared Obregon. “You don’t need to know how to code. You don’t need to be an engineer. All you need is an idea of how you might leverage it in the classroom.”

Beyond making AI accessible, Playlab’s approach fosters a culture of classroom innovation that can be shared, remixed, and scaled across educational communities.

There’s Still Skepticism

Even with the potential benefits, skepticism around GenAI persists, and understandably so—AI is a rapidly evolving technology, and its implications for teaching are still unfolding. 

Amanda Drenth is a seasoned educator who has provided direct coaching to educators on content-specific instructional practices. In her strategy role at Leading Educators, she’s been an early experimenter with Playlab tools to better understand potential use cases and what educators will need to get started.

She explains,

For educators hesitant about AI, PlayLab’s curated tools are user-friendly and tailored to specific needs, unlike general tools like ChatGPT. These tools can save time and enhance practice by providing targeted content and reducing stress. Once educators understand how AI can streamline tasks, like creating practice problems or adjusting text complexity, they may find it more valuable and easier to integrate into their daily routines.”

Developing comfort with new practices takes time, and one common trait among participants at the design sprint was their dedication to learning something new.

Sandra Jin, who has led ideation and internal learning on Gen AI  with a broad set of staff at Leading Educators, offers practical advice for educators who are skeptical.

“Start small. Don’t feel pressured to embed AI into your practice immediately,” she says. “Instead, begin by experimenting with AI tools in areas like planning or analyzing student data. By becoming a learner of AI first, you can build your comfort and confidence before fully integrating these tools into your teaching. It’s about easing into AI and exploring its potential in manageable steps.” 

Obregon agrees. He says,

Try to learn as much as you can by experimenting. Similar to the ways the internet changed how information is shared and created, Gen AI is here to stay. Consider how it could be applied in the classroom and the potential downsides to avoid the misuse of AI. Ensure you’re looking at your district and state guidance around using AI. Also, feel free to reach out to organizations like PlayLab AI or Leading Educators that can offer advice. We’re all in this together.”

A recent article by The Wallace Foundation highlights the experiences of district leaders working with Digital Promise that align with these points. These leaders emphasize the importance of thoughtful, informed AI use in schools. According to Pati Ruiz, Digital Promise’s senior director of edtech and emerging technologies, AI already supports teachers in various ways, from lesson planning to communication with families. Ruiz highlights how AI tools have empowered educators, including those with specific challenges like dyslexia, to perform their duties more effectively.

As Ruiz emphasizes, being a “critical consumer” of AI tools is essential to ensuring their responsible use in education.

Continue to Center the Possibilities for Student-Lead Innovation and Experimentation

Gen AI offers new ways to put students in the driver’s seat of their own learning. One example is the Group Chat tool, developed by LeAnita Garner from Leading Educators. This AI chatbot acts as a virtual table facilitator to enhance math discussions in small groups.

Students enter a math problem into the chatbot, which then guides them through the problem-solving process. It helps students articulate their thought processes, navigate misconceptions, and engage more deeply with the material. By providing real-time feedback and prompts, Group Chat fosters student leadership and communication skills while supporting small group facilitators.

Jin adds,

This tool addresses a common challenge—how to facilitate meaningful math discourse when a teacher can’t always be present in every small group. Providing timely guidance helps students get the support they need and aids facilitators in refining their instructional techniques.”

AI tools like Group Chat are reshaping how students make sense of the content they’re learning and helping them speak the academic language of mathematics with confidence.

The Power of Collaboration Across Different Fields

One of the conundrums of our digitally connected world is that we often find ourselves in siloes—staying within our own field, lane, and, post-pandemic, even our rectangular screens as we zoom through the digital realm. The design sprint highlighted the impact of breaking these barriers, much like the symbiotic relationship between bees and flowers.

The diverse group of school leaders, teachers, students, funders, product teams, and nonprofit leaders worked together in a way that mirrors the cross-pollination process, where different elements come together to create something new and valuable.

Reflecting on what it was like to be part of this dynamic space, Jin shares:

Though I’m more used to working with groups from similar roles, this event brought together a broad range of participants—school leaders, teachers, students, funders, product teams, and nonprofit leaders. Seeing such a varied group come together to develop tools and solutions was inspiring. For instance, a student, a nonprofit leader, and a curriculum developer worked together on one tool, each bringing unique perspectives. This cross-disciplinary teamwork highlighted how diverse viewpoints can drive innovation and lead to powerful educational outcomes.” 

As we continue to explore new frontiers in education, embracing this cross-pollination of knowledge will be crucial. Like bees and flowers, our diverse expertise and experiences can foster creative solutions and improve teaching and learning.

Looking Ahead

Effective use of Gen AI will require key investments in policy, practice, and governance. Steady momentum is already building. Last year, not a single state department of education had issued recommendations on AI use. Today, nearly two dozen states have published guidance, a promising start.

Now, it’s time to connect policy to practice. We must explore what works, for whom, and under what conditions. Expanding access to tools and training will help demystify AI and unlock its potential. Collaboration across sectors is key to supporting educators in harnessing AI effectively. We’re eager to do our part and share what we learn along the way.

Know someone who can benefit from insights like these? Forward this article or invite them to sign up for our newsletter (in the footer)!