Ask ten schools how they are approaching AI and you will get ten different answers. Some have a policy and a steering group. Some have a quiet feeling that staff are already using it and nobody has quite decided what to say about that yet.
Both are normal. AI did not arrive in education through a planned rollout, and many schools are working it out as they go.
So across September and October we are running a series of conversations with Laura Knight, looking at the questions school and trust leaders are actually asking rather than the ones the headlines suggest they should be. Three sessions, each on a different part of the challenge.
Joining us is Laura Knight, a respected voice in education and AI, known for helping schools navigate technological change with confidence and clarity, and for speaking to education audiences around the world on the impact of AI in learning.
Here is a preview of what is coming.
Webinar One: Who actually owns AI in your school?
Wednesday 30 September
The first session looks at AI as a leadership and governance question rather than a technology purchase.
We will get into where responsibility for AI should sit, why it rarely belongs with IT support or the Computer Science department alone, and what a useful steering group looks like when safeguarding, data protection and teaching staff all have a stake in it.
We will also talk about the common traps: buying tools before agreeing what problem they solve, running pilots with no plan to evaluate them, and the policies that get written once and never revisited.
Register for this webinar here!
Webinar Two: What happens to assessment now?
Wednesday 07 October
The second session takes on academic integrity, and starts by moving the conversation away from detection tools.
If a finished piece of work is now a weaker source of evidence, what do schools look at instead? We will be discussing the shift from product to process, the kinds of evidence that make learning visible, and how tools schools already use can capture that working as it happens rather than as an extra task.
There will also be some honest discussion about where AI can and cannot help with marking and feedback.
Register for this webinar here!
Webinar Three: The Microsoft AI tools your school may already have!
Wednesday 14 October
Many schools already have capable AI-supported tools sitting inside Microsoft 365, and this session is about getting more from them.
We will explore the Microsoft Learning Accelerators and how they can enhance accessibility, reading, speaking, and research skills in everyday learning. A live demonstration of Microsoft Teach will show how teachers can use AI to generate curriculum-aligned lessons, quizzes, and classroom-ready activities in just a few minutes.
We will also talk about how to tell when a tool is genuinely earning its place, so schools can put their time and budget where it makes the most difference.
Register for this webinar here!
Who these sessions are for?
- Headteachers, senior leaders and trust central teams shaping a digital or AI strategy
- Governors and trustees who want to ask better questions about AI
- Assessment leads and curriculum leaders rethinking how work is set and evidenced
- IT and digital leads fielding “can we use this?” questions from staff
- Teachers who would like practical, realistic ideas rather than more noise
No prior AI knowledge is assumed in any of the three. If your school is somewhere between curious and cautious, that is exactly the audience we have in mind.
Why we are running this series
Many of the conversations about AI in education sit at one of two extremes: it will transform everything, or it should be kept out of schools entirely. Neither offers the practical steps schools need to use AI safely, responsibly, and effectively.
These sessions aim for the middle ground. Practical, cautiously optimistic, and grounded in what schools can realistically do with the systems and the time they already have.
FAQs
When are the sessions taking place?
The series runs across September and October, with sessions on Wednesday 30 September, Wednesday 7 October and Wednesday 14 October.
Do I need to attend all three?
No. Each session stands on its own and you can watch them in any order. Taken together they cover strategy, assessment and the Microsoft tools available in the classroom.
Is this only relevant if we already use AI?
Not at all. No prior AI knowledge is assumed. The sessions are aimed at schools somewhere between curious and cautious, including those still deciding what their position should be.
Will the sessions be recorded?
Yes. If you cannot join live, recordings will be made available afterwards. Please register to make sure you don’t miss out.
