Research map / Large language models / AI and society
AI, Ethics, and Education: The Pioneering Path of Sidekick Academy
Read the paperCheck your idea against 108,967 papers
AI-extracted summary. Written by AI from the paper's full text. Numbers and claims can be wrong or missing context, so check the paper before you cite or build on it.
Describes Sidekick Academy, a privacy-compliant online platform wrapping the ChatGPT API with eight teacher-monitored lessons teaching middle and high school students to use generative AI productively and ethically.
Problem
Students and teachers lack a safe, privacy-compliant, guided space to learn how to use generative AI productively and ethically, creating risks and equity gaps in K-12 education.
Approach
A school-approved, teacher-monitored sandbox built on the ChatGPT API where every student interaction is recorded and viewable, paired with a curriculum of short task-based lessons (with videos and reflections) covering use, prompting, and AI ethics.
Key results
- Sidekick Academy's first version was used starting September 2023 in middle and high schools; reported results are preliminary and anecdotal, with teachers reporting higher quality work and more ethical engagement.
- The platform has eight tasks (Sum It Up, Learn from the Pros, Write With Me, Think Tank, Just Asking, Check It Out, Ethical Navigator, Study Buddy) plus a Freestyle sandbox.
- The program was piloted for free in a Title I school.
Surprising findings
- Many middle school students felt that using Sidekick was 'cheating', and did not know that some AI uses were allowed in school.
Limitations
- Evidence is preliminary and anecdotal; formal post-program survey results were not yet reported.
- Sidekick Academy is designed for middle and early high school students, not younger learners.
- Funding for broader cost coverage is still being sought.
Experimental setup
Builds on: ChatGPT API
Closest papers by meaning
- Build Your Own Robot Friend: An Open-Source Learning Module for Accessible and Engaging AI Education (AAAI 2024 · similarity 0.88)
- Fostering Epistemic Insights into AI Ethics through a Constructionist Pedagogy: An Interdisciplinary Approach to AI Literacy (AAAI 2025 · similarity 0.88)
- Dr. R.O. Bott Will See You Now: Exploring AI for Wellbeing with Middle School Students (AAAI 2024 · similarity 0.87)
- Foundations of Autonomous Vehicles: A Curriculum Model for Developing Competencies in Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things for Grades 7–10 (AAAI 2024 · similarity 0.85)
- Understanding K-12 Teachers’ Needs for AI Education: A Survey-Based Study (AAAI 2025 · similarity 0.85)
- Shaping AI Interest in Rural Middle Schools with Unplugged Learning: Gender Differences and Teacher Insights (AAAI 2025 · similarity 0.84)
Writing a paper in this area? scime draft is a free LaTeX editor with AI included, real-time co-authors and a check of your references and venue rules before you submit. It also imports OpenAI Prism projects.