Literacy rates in the U.S. have declined for decades, with serious consequences for learning and opportunity.  The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows that 33% of fourth graders and 29% of eighth graders read at a “proficient” level. 37% of 4th graders scored below “basic” in reading, a near-record high, and more than half of U.S. adults read below a sixth-grade level.

At the same time, nearly 40% of college students drop out before completing their degree. For years, “college-for-all” was the guiding principle, yet today the country faces a shortage of skilled trade workers, jobs that remain essential even as AI disrupts white-collar professions. The education system is not only failing to meet literacy benchmarks but is also misaligned with future workforce needs. We are at a crossroads. With the rise of AI as a transformative technology, the critical question is whether it will reinforce outdated systems or spark a reimagining of how and what students learn.

Equally important is whether families can choose the best environments and tools for their children. When funding follows the child through programs like education savings accounts (ESAs), innovation can spread more rapidly and broadly, moving from isolated pilots to scalable solutions. These dynamics highlight both the risks of inaction and the possibilities of renewal in the age of AI.

This context sets the stage for the three themes of this Insight, which together demonstrate how AI can reshape learning while maintaining literacy and opportunity at its core.

This Insight explores:

• How AI is reshaping instruction and helping every student, from struggling readers to future STEM leaders, build pathways to citizenship, college, and career.
• The promise and risks of AI: access, workforce demands, and responsible leadership.
• How AI transforms personalized learning and advances promising new postsecondary and vocational models.

LITERACY AT THE CORE

Literacy is the foundation for all future learning, yet it remains the nation’s greatest weakness. Many states are returning to the science of reading (with phonics instruction among its core components) to address gaps in early reading. AI has the potential to extend these efforts by offering individualized lessons, real-time feedback, and pacing tailored to each child, which a teacher in a large classroom may not always be able to provide.

Yet reading is more than decoding words. Genuine comprehension grows from accumulated knowledge and lived experience. Understanding baseball statistics, for instance, requires some familiarity with the game’s rules. That is why pedagogy matters: it provides the structure that helps students connect new texts to prior knowledge.

AI could reinforce two different approaches:

• Learner-centered model, nurturing individual skills and interests; or
• A knowledge-based curriculum where content is deliberately built year over year to ensure every student shares a common foundation.

E.D. Hirsch and the Core Knowledge Foundation argue that this shared, cumulative knowledge is essential. Without it, literacy and civic understanding falter. Vocabulary and comprehension expand as students build a broad base of knowledge, and AI, wisely guided, can deliver both personalization and a shared foundation that levels the playing field for all learners.

CURIOSITY, WONDER, AND AGENCY

The Oxford AIEOU project warns that AI can flatten learning into automated compliance or ignite curiosity, depending on how it is designed and used. Wonder is not a distraction from rigor but the key to meaningful learning. Used well, AI can open up new frontiers of exploration, enabling students to connect ideas, ask deeper questions, and develop agency over their education.

This debate is not abstract. Student behavior already shows what’s at stake. Students use AI to complete assignments, reduce anxiety, and stay motivated. This organic adoption underscores the urgency for communities to guide AI use responsibly, ensuring it fosters deep comprehension and long-term skills rather than shortcuts.

COMPETING PERSPECTIVES: REDEFINING RIGOR AND RELEVANCE IN THE AI ERA

Economist Tyler Cowen argues that AI tools, such as ChatGPT, have revealed the limitations of traditional assessments. He advocates for education centered on mentorship, adaptability, and critical thinking. Institutions that resist this shift risk leaving learners behind, especially if they overlook the importance of literacy.

“In a perfect world, we want every student to have individual-level assistance, at any time, in any language, in the format they want…”

MARGINAL REVOLUTION

OpenAI’s new “study mode” aims to guide students through concepts like a tutor, emphasizing engagement and learning. Reports in MIT Technology Review and Brookings confirm AI’s role is shifting from efficiency to pedagogy and integrity.

Bias and transparency remain important concerns. Schools must ensure AI supports all learners rather than reinforcing existing gaps. Transparent training methods for AI systems, along with community oversight, builds trust. Equally important, literacy and civic understanding depend on cumulative knowledge across history, literature, science, and the arts. AI and core content can provide personalization and a common foundation together.

OPENING UP NEW CAREER PATHWAYS

Another dimension of the education revolution is career readiness. As AI reshapes white-collar jobs, students need exposure to technical and trade careers that remain indispensable. Technologies like AI-powered simulations and virtual reality can now allow every student to “test drive” careers, from healthcare to advanced manufacturing. These tools allow learners to envision futures that might once have seemed out of reach. In Arizona, new CTE programs tied to advanced manufacturing are linking high school pathways to industries that AI is reshaping.

Imagine a student in a school district with a high percentage of economically disadvantaged students. With limited internet at home but support from a grant-funded AI tutor, he advances in math and earns career-focused microcredentials. A fuller illustration appears later in this Insight.

THE STAKES ARE REAL

Fueling education innovation requires more than technology alone. Education innovation happens when creators design tools that families, teachers, and students can actually use, and when families have the freedom to choose among them. Programs like ESAs, vouchers, and microgrants allow funding to follow the child, enabling parents to direct resources toward the schools, platforms, and supports that meet their child’s needs. That choice generates demand, fueling education entrepreneurs and school districts to scale solutions from AI-enabled literacy tools to career-focused pathways.

Civic leaders like Hera Varmah (with Step Up for Students and American Federation for Children) and Jenny Clark (Love Your School) demonstrate how policy and on-the-ground support help families navigate ESAs and channel funds to practical solutions. That is the engine that opens pathways to innovation and turns isolated AI pilots into durable improvements in literacy and career pathways.

America’s K–12 education system is in urgent need of transformation. Doubling down on approaches that have not worked is no longer an option. The question is not whether AI will enter classrooms. It already has. The question is whether teachers and students will use it to strengthen what matters most: literacy built on shared knowledge, comprehension that grows with experience, and career pathways that prepare students for a future where adaptability, skill, and human judgment are irreplaceable. Equally important, education must prepare students for citizenship. Literacy is the gateway to college and career, civic understanding, and participation in a free society. As AI reshapes learning and society, education must equip every student to thrive as a citizen and a worker.

How do we prepare students for a world in which AI touches nearly every profession and success depends on their ability to read, analyze, and validate AI-produced information?

Some roles, such as writers and customer service, are already being reshaped by AI. Others, such as power plant operators or equipment tenders, are less affected since they require specialized expertise, safety, and human judgment.

In every case, literacy and critical thinking remain the foundation for using AI as a tool to enhance, not replace, human capability.

AI’s most significant potential lies in delivering personalized, immediate, and scalable reading support. This can help teachers and volunteers reach more students, adapt to diverse backgrounds and languages, and sustain engagement in under-resourced schools. Used wisely, AI can turn literacy into a gateway, not a barrier, to future learning, college, and career.

Experts at IBM discussed this topic and the potential of AI (37 minutes):

REWRITING THE RULES OF LEARNING IN THE AI ERA

AI offers personalized instruction, real-time feedback, and broader access to learning opportunities. When used well, it expands opportunity; when used poorly, it deepens divides.

Yet key barriers and risks remain:

• Limited access to devices and broadband,  especially in underserved communities.
• Bias in AI language models, reinforcing stereotypes for multilingual learners, students with disabilities, and students of color.lingual learners, those with disabilities, and students of color.
• Overreliance on AI tutoring can weaken critical thinking and deep literacy.

To address these risks, research points to these priorities:

• Expand device and broadband access.
• Train educators to integrate AI with traditional teaching.
• Invest in bias-aware tools with a diverse range of inputs.
• Strengthen early literacy to ensure readiness for AI-integrated learning environments.

Excel in Ed provides some digital policy blueprints for the states.

EXPANDING FAMILY CHOICE

The mechanisms that enable families to direct funds vary by state, but they share a common goal of expanding access and flexibility. States use various policy tools to give families greater control over education funding. The most common are vouchers, tax-credit scholarships, and ESAs, each providing parents with varying levels of flexibility in directing resources. For details, see The Policy Circle’s Education Savings Accounts Insight.

AGENCY, ACCESS, AND REAL-LIFE STAKES

As previously discussed, when thoughtfully integrated, AI tools can expand opportunity and empower personalized learning for all students. Thoughtful guidance from educators, families, and communities is vital for turning AI’s potential into long-term skill development and meaningful learning, the classroom-level application of the broader themes of this Insight.

In the age of AI, students and families face a double challenge: using powerful tools effectively while ensuring core skills, especially literacy, are strong for all. As Brookings’ Rebecca Winthrop warns, AI tools are entering young people’s lives faster than thoughtful educational guidance. Shifting workforce demands and widening skill gaps could leave millions behind without deliberate leadership. Building agency, ensuring access, and safeguarding foundational skills must therefore be at the center of how we integrate AI into the learning process.

TURNING POTENTIAL INTO PATHWAYS

When foundational literacy is paired with purposeful, personalized learning and community support, AI can help students catch up and accelerate toward new opportunities. A Texas school district provides the backdrop for one example of how agency, equitable access, and thoughtful use of AI can translate into success in microcredentialing, career, and college for many.

CASE STUDY: MATEO’S STORY

As previewed earlier, one student’s story can illustrate how an AI tutor, paired with community partnerships, can connect literacy and career pathways. Imagine a 16-year-old student, Mateo, in a Texas district similar to Southwest ISD, where 70% of students are economically disadvantaged. Despite limited home internet access, Mateo uses an AI tutor made possible through Texas’s TRAIGA open-source pilot grant, which several districts are piloting, to master calculus during after-school lab hours. The tool, trained on bilingual STEM resources, identifies gaps in his middle school education in a migrant farming community and adapts lessons to his interest in renewable energy. By junior year, Mateo earned a microcredential in grid modernization through a partnership with a Houston energy startup, culminating in a project designing a solar-powered irrigation system for local farms.

The journey of a student like Mateo exemplifies what communities can achieve when schools, policymakers, and local partners collaborate to make innovation meaningful. With the right leadership, AI can become a bridge, not a barrier, to college and career opportunities, not just for some students, but for all.

Changing workforce requirements and educational disruption threaten to leave millions behind if basic foundational skills, especially reading and math, are not addressed.

These core concepts are crucial to understanding how education is evolving in the era of AI. Literacy remains the foundation that determines whether AI serves as a bridge to opportunity or a barrier that widens gaps.

• Literacy as the Anchor for AI-Driven Tools: Literacy is the gateway to all further learning, and without it, no credential or career pathway is possible. AI-powered apps and platforms offer real-time feedback in phonics and comprehension, providing early intervention at scale. By strengthening literacy first, these tools ensure students can access and benefit from personalized learning, microcredentials, and workforce preparation.
• Personalized and Adaptive Learning: AI-powered systems tailor reading practice and content to each student’s pace, providing struggling readers with additional support and advanced learners with more challenging content. By addressing reading gaps early, adaptive platforms can set students on a path where literacy is a bridge to credentials, college, and careers.
• Microcredentials and Career Technical Education (CTE): Short, skills-based credentials, often AI-enabled, that students can earn from K–12 onward, connecting directly to workforce jobs or college credits.
• Outcome-Driven Education: AI helps align assignments and assessments with valued skills and credentials, from data analysis and technical writing to customer communication, linking them to career paths and certifications.
• AI-Ready Skills: Beyond coding, students need skills in analysis, digital citizenship, ethical decision-making, and critical thinking, all built on a foundation of literacy. A strong reading foundation unlocks job skills, credentials, and the ability to thrive in an AI world.
  • Arizona’s Unbound Academy uses adaptive AI to deliver core academics and CTE exploration online, combining guided sessions with projects, life skills, and mentorship.

Under the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution, education is primarily a state responsibility. States set policy, fund schools, and determine curricula, while the federal government can supply targeted support through funding, national priorities, and guidance.

In most states, the State Boards of Education establish public school standards, graduation requirements, and oversee curriculum and assessments. Local boards and county offices adopt instructional materials, hire staff, approve new schools, and determine the use of technology and AI tools. This layered governance allows districts to pilot innovations within state policy frameworks.

Roughly 90% of public education funding comes from state and local levels. Federal government interventions, including civil rights protections, aid, research, and guidance on emerging technologies, help set national priorities and encourage innovation, but do not override state authority.

AGENCY POLICIES IN ACTION

Recent federal moves highlight AI’s role in literacy and workforce readiness. The April 2025 executive order Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education for American Youth designates AI literacy, including foundational reading and comprehension, as a national priority. The order directs agencies to:

• Prioritize grants for AI-focused teacher training and student coursework.
• Form a White House Task Force on AI Education, focusing on underserved communities.
• Launch a Presidential AI Challenge to highlight innovative solutions.
• Direct the Departments of Education, Labor, and the National Science Foundation (NSF) to fund programs that close skill gaps and expand AI integration.

The order also authorizes federal workforce funds for AI-related coursework, certifications, and credentials. Other federal steps include:

• U.S. Department of Education Guidance (July 2025): Confirms federal funds can support AI-powered instructional materials, tutoring systems, and hybrid models, with emphasis on responsible use and access for underserved learners. Implementation will depend on rapid professional development for teachers. States and districts are beginning to expand training programs, often supported by federal funds, to help educators quickly adapt classroom practices.
• Workforce Pell Grants Expansion: Pell now covers short-term AI-focused programs, including microcredentials, bootcamps, and technical courses in robotics, automation, and intelligent systems. Recent policy changes expand eligibility to include high-quality postsecondary programs in AI, data science, and digital skills. Federal guidance encourages schools to embed AI-ready skills and tools to prepare students for an AI-powered economy.

Beyond the April 2025 directive, a separate Executive Order expands federal funding for industry-aligned, short-term credentials, with a focus on AI upskilling and digital innovation.

Federal agencies are increasing their investment in AI through the $3 billion Network and Information Technology Research and Development (NITRD) program for fiscal year 2025. This supports responsible, ethical, and workforce-focused AI initiatives across agencies, including the NSF, National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Department of Energy (DOE). The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) complements this work by funding multidisciplinary AI research centers that examine impacts on learning, mobility, and civic life.

Policy choices at various levels of government influence how families and educators interact with AI in education. Federal policies set national priorities and guardrails, states establish standards and governance frameworks, and local boards decide which tools reach classrooms. For parents and educators, understanding these layers clarifies where advocacy matters most, from supporting state literacy initiatives to urging districts to adopt practical AI tools.

STATE EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDIES

• Texas: The Texas Responsible AI Governance Act (TRAIGA) funds AI pilots in K–12 via a legislative “sandbox” model, enabling districts to test tools safely while promoting ethical adoption, workforce readiness, and equitable access.
• Utah: AI Policy Act establishes a comprehensive framework for educational AI governance. It mandates transparency regarding AI in the classroom, creates a state Office of AI Policy, and authorizes an AI Learning Laboratory where schools, including CTE and vocational programs, can pilot AI tools in a safe, accountable environment.
• Alabama: Expands microcredential programs that integrate AI literacy and digital workforce skills, especially in high school and technical education. The Alabama Commission on Higher Education administers a federally supported grant program funding short-term, stackable AI microcredentials aligned with workforce needs in manufacturing, healthcare, and cybersecurity.

WHERE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMES IN

Local administrators, including school boards, college boards, and district administrators, are at the forefront of piloting and deploying AI tools that reflect the specific needs, strengths, and values of their communities. They play a central role in negotiating partnerships, shaping adoption models, and ensuring that AI integration supports both literacy and life readiness. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina, one of the nation’s largest districts, recently piloted AI classroom tools, underscoring how local boards are leading on adoption.

K–12 districts spend $26 to $41 billion annually on educational technology, funded through property taxes, state appropriations, and programs such as E-Rate (internet access), Title I and Title IV (technology support), and the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) program. Though this represents only a fraction of the nation’s $857 billion in public school funding, it is notable because K–12 district spending on educational technology has nearly tripled since 2015. Despite this growth, many districts underutilize or duplicate tools, underscoring the need for strategic procurement and teacher training.

Local school boards and state policies also shape the framework for approving new schools, regulating homeschooling, and fostering or restricting choice. With the rise of AI-powered resources, these authorities are well-positioned to empower families to personalize education, whether in district schools, innovative models, or at home.

• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Fox Chapel Area School District used empathy interviews to capture student views on AI and shape classroom guidelines. Regional training summits and workshops help teachers adopt AI responsibly.
• Maricopa County, Arizona: Chandler-Gilbert Community College launched a Bachelor of Science in AI & Machine Learning in 2025, only the third community college in the U.S. to do so. This expands AI pathways alongside existing associate degrees, certificates, and incubators.

Innovative districts across Texas also offer compelling examples:

• Southwest ISD: AI labs for personalized learning and career pathways.
• Tomball ISD: Pilots PowerBuddy classroom AI assistants to streamline lesson planning and tailor instruction
• Alpha Schools innovate by embedding future-ready competencies into daily learning. AI-driven personalized instruction frees up time for hands-on life skills workshops in teamwork, public speaking, financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and resilience. Additional sessions explore AI itself, covering ethics, creative uses, and workplace implications, grounding future skills in community-based educational models.

Together, these examples demonstrate how federal, state, and local policies, as well as private innovation, can guide AI adoption that expands opportunities, enhances literacy, and prepares students for an AI-powered world.

For more models of civic and local leadership in educational innovation, see The Policy Circle’s Education Innovations Brief.

BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

Beyond the classroom, AI is transforming how schools and districts are managed, yielding efficiency and better outcomes. For example, Boston Public Schools partnered with MIT researchers to launch the Transportation Challenge to optimize bus routes. The algorithmic system reduced duplicate and empty routes, reconfigured bus stops, and considered traffic data, saving the district $3–5 million annually in operating costs and cutting planning time from weeks to minutes.

In Georgia, Gwinnett County uses predictive analytics to identify students at risk of dropping out by combining internal data (grades, attendance, behavior) with external patterns. Teachers receive weekly alerts classifying risk levels (red, yellow, or green) so interventions can begin early.

These tools demonstrate how local governments can pair instructional AI with operational innovations to make schools more responsive, cut waste, and refocus human effort toward students.

The educational technology ecosystem spans buyers, users, providers, funders, and advocates who shape how tools are developed and scaled.

BUYERS AND DECISION-MAKERS

• Public school districts: the largest U.S. K–12 buyers, using local, state, and federal funds, including ESSER, to purchase devices, software, and services.
• Colleges and universities: consider purchasing a learning management system (LMS), digital content, and AI tutoring.
• Private and charter schools and homeschoolers: more nimble adopters with flexible budgets.
• Corporate training departments: purchase EdTech for workforce upskilling and compliance.

USERS

• Students: Includes children up to adults; their outcomes determine product success.
• Teachers, professors, and trainers: integrate tools into instruction and require professional development.
• Administrators: superintendents, principals, and IT directors evaluate curriculum alignment, security, and budgets.

PROVIDERS

• EdTech companies and publishers: build platforms, adaptive software, and hardware (Google, Microsoft, Khan Academy, DreamBox, Amira).
• Infrastructure providers: deliver connectivity, devices, data storage, cybersecurity, and interoperability.
• Content creators: develop multimedia, assessments, and open educational resources (OER, free and openly licensed materials) aligned to standards.

FUNDERS AND INVESTORS

• Venture/private equity: Owl Ventures, Reach Capital, and General Catalyst fund high-growth startups; China captures 60% of global VC in EdTech.
• Philanthropy and nonprofits: Walton, Gates, Daniels Fund, Ambassador Enterprises, Blue Meridian, and Drexel Fund support research and innovation in digital learning. For more information on the various ways philanthropy can support educational innovation, see The Philanthropy Roundtable.
• Public sector: federal programs (E-Rate, Title I, Title IV) and state grants fund purchases and training.

POLICY AND ADVOCACY GROUPS

• Industry associations: SIIA (Software & Information Industry Association, a digital content trade group) and ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education, now part of ASCD) advance standards, training, and best practices.
• Research and evaluation organizations: measure product impact and cost-effectiveness.
• Policy organizations such as EdChoice, Excel in Ed, American Federation for Children, and others are working to improve education. Connect with these or research ones that operate near you.

SHAPING ADOPTION

Stakeholders influence which tools are available and how they are integrated, aligned, and accessed. Civil society partners help AI serve literacy and opportunity.,

• EDSAFE AI Alliance: Advocates for safe AI and partners with National AI Literacy Day; AI in Texas promotes civic engagement in advancing ethical AI integration.
• Harvard Project on Workforce + Education Design Lab (Axim Collaborative): Partners with community colleges to link real-time labor data with training for under-resourced students.
• Local grantmakers and nonprofits: Team4Tech works globally with underserved schools; Digital Promise partners with districts and universities to scale AI literacy and evidence-based learning tools.
• Love Your School: Helps families manage Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESAs) via digital wallets in AZ, AL, and WV; shows how tech streamlines funding and could expand with AI. For more on how digital payment systems are transforming funding and choice, see The Policy Circle’s Future of Money Insight.
• Microsoft: $4 billion towards “Elevate” initiative (aiming to reach 20M learners) and $23 million to National Academy for AI Instruction with OpenAI, Anthropic, and American Federation for Teachers to train 400,000 teachers. Nearly half of education leaders use AI daily.

For more models of leadership in education, see The Policy Circle’s Education K–12 Brief.

In the age of AI, the education revolution goes beyond devices and platforms. It begins with literacy and extends to preparing every learner for creativity, problem-solving, and leadership in a world that is undergoing rapid transformation. Closing the literacy gap with AI-enabled tools is not just a challenge; it is a crucial opportunity. It’s the opportunity to open more doors to college and career pathways.

The question is whether we will step forward, starting now.

More Foundational than AI: What are your school’s pedagogical priorities?

• Is your school district knowledge-based? Compare your school’s curriculum map with the Core Knowledge Foundation model.
• Is the science of reading being taught?
• Are reading and math literacy levels measured in K–4? Beyond 4th grade, children should be “reading to learn” rather than learning to read.
• Does your state promote early literacy? (See ExcelinEd’s policy blueprint.)

AI in Your Community:

• Does your state have policies that guide the use of AI in classrooms?
• Is your school district using federal or state funds toward AI-supported literacy or teacher training?
• Are local boards ensuring transparency and accountability in AI adoption?

Parents: Advocate for the school adoption of AI reading supports and utilize free or low-cost AI tools for home literacy practice.

For Parents of Struggling Readers:

• Use no-cost AI tutors like Microsoft Reading Coach or Amira Learning.
• Try prompts in ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, or Khanmigo:
  • “Create a five-minute reading passage for a [grade]-grade student reading at about [grade level lower] level. Use familiar vocabulary, short sentences (no more than eight words), and include at least five three-syllable words such as ‘beautiful,’ ‘animal,’ and ‘tomorrow.’ The passage should be an engaging story about [topic of your choice] and end with two comprehension questions, one factual recall and one inferential.”
• Ask your school if AI-powered literacy tools are being used; if not,  advocate for thoughtful adoption based on the student population’s needs.
• Build habits: Set a daily reading goal, receive instant feedback, and track progress with tools like Reading Coach.

For Parents, Teachers, and Volunteers Who Work with Teens:

• Start the Conversation: Encourage interest in technology, healthcare, skilled trades, or other fields.
• Use AI to Jumpstart Searches: Open ChatGPT, FreeSpoke AI feature, Bing Chat, Google Gemini, or Khanmigo, and enter a prompt like these:
  • “What are the best free or low-cost microcredential and CTE programs for high school students in [field]?”
  • “List renewable energy microcredentials in [state].”
  • “Which local CTE programs offer paid internships?”
• Customize Results to Real Life: Confirm programs on school/district sites, share options with counselors or mentors, and attend local fairs or open houses.
• Leverage Community Resources: Connect with community centers, workforce boards, or nonprofits offering mentorship and real-world experiences.

Educators:

• Advocate for instruction grounded in the science of reading.
• Join AI-focused professional development. Many programs are free and offered by groups like Digital Promise, Microsoft Learn, or EdTech Evidence Exchange, now merged with InnovateEDU.
• Integrate AI-driven literacy supports (DreamBox Reading, Khanmigo, Amira Learning) into daily practice.
• Pilot AI tools in small groups; share results with peers and leaders.
• Streamline planning with AI: “Generate three differentiated reading comprehension activities for 5th grade, with students at 3rd, 5th, and 7th-grade levels. Include one discussion question per level.”
• Form literacy and AI advisory groups with families, teachers, and tech experts.
• Advocate for state or local support, citing models such as Texas’s TRAIGA or Alpha Schools.

Civic and School Leaders:

• Lead in bringing AI-supported literacy to early grades by partnering with trusted edtech providers, securing pilot funding, and setting measurable goals.
• Support organizations advancing education innovation by donating to nonprofits, community foundations, or through your preferred donor-advised fund.

AI Literacy Tools

• Amira Learning is an AI reading tutor that provides real-time oral fluency feedback and targeted support.
• Microsoft Reading Coach is an adaptive reading assistant that offers personalized word practice tailored to student performance.
• Khanmigo, Khan Academy’s AI-powered tutor for reading, writing, math, and critical thinking support.
• DreamBox Reading is an Intelligent adaptive platform that personalizes reading fluency and comprehension instruction using AI.

Microcredentialing and Pathway Resources

• Alpha School was featured in this WSJ article
• University of Houston microcredentialing
• Arizona ESA Program
• Harvard Emerging School Models

Policy and Practice Guides

• The Policy Circle’s Digital Landscape Brief
• Afterschool Alliance toolkits, practical guides, and resources to help communities design, fund, and advocate for high-quality afterschool and summer learning programs.
• BBC: Katty Kay Interview with Sal Khan, The Best-Case Scenario for AI in Schools
• EdChoice State Index compares states’ education choice policies (see discussion above)
• InnovateEDU is a nonprofit partnership that helps schools select and effectively implement education technology.
• ISTE + ASCD is a global nonprofit that supports educators with professional learning, community, and resources to improve teaching, learning, and technology integration.
• School Boards for Academic Excellence (SBAE)