ELA educators to determine structured approach, best practices for responsible AI use
English language arts (ELA) classroom teachers will lead the creation of a scalable framework for responsible AI use within the discipline through a new initiative led by the National Council of Teachers of English, courtesy of a national grant from Google.org, the company’s philanthropy.
The project centers ELA teachers as decision makers, following NCTE’s proven cohort model. A dozen groups comprising four teachers and one facilitator each will engage in sustained, collaborative professional development to deepen understanding of AI’s possibilities and constraints, facilitate implementation, and generate practical resources, including peer-reviewed lesson plans for ELA instruction in grades 6–12.
“NCTE has defined literacy in a digital age across decades of rapidly evolving technology. We all know that AI will play a major role in language and literacy in the coming years. The question is how teachers should—and should not—harness AI in the classroom to help shape lifelong readers, writers, and critical thinkers,” NCTE Executive Director Emily Kirkpatrick said. “Centering teacher expertise is core to NCTE’s mission. This project does so in a manner that will support thousands of educators and add clarity to the ELA discipline for the benefit of students.”
The resources created through this initiative will define and guide the implementation of updated approaches to core ELA strategies and skills. Two areas of concentration are pedagogy—teaching reading, writing, speaking, and listening, all informed by critical thinking—and teacher leadership, including ethics, planning, mentoring of new teachers, text selection, and student publishing. There will also be opportunities to incorporate direct feedback from students.
The first component of this project is an invitation-only convening to be held in February 2026. The teacher cohorts will begin their collaboration in March and work together through December 2026.
NCTE has long been aware of the connection between English and technology, as reflected in research and position statements on media education in language arts; professional development events on the intersections of technology, coding, and ELA instruction; and NCTE members consistently requesting resources and information on AI, including at the annual NCTE-NCTM Joint Conference for Elementary Literacy and Mathematics.
English language arts teachers of grades 6–12 who are interested in participating in a cohort can complete this form.
About NCTE
The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) is the professional organization for literacy teachers spanning preK through college. Through expertise and advocacy from its members’ professional research, practice, and knowledge, NCTE has served at the forefront of every major improvement in the teaching and learning of English and the language arts since 1911. For more information, please visit ncte.org.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Allie Ciaramella, NCTE: media@ncte.org