Artificial intelligence may be the new frontier for childhood schooling, but the idea of teacherless classrooms has received mixed reviews from state education officials.
Unbound Academy, a Texas-based institution billing itself as the nation’s first virtual, tuition-free charter school for grades 4 through 8, reportedly employs AI to teach students in a way that can be geared toward the individual student without “frustration[s]” sometimes present in traditional schooling.
While such schools have seen success in being approved to educate students in Arizona, Unbound was formally rejected by the Pennsylvania Department of Education in a letter obtained by Fox News Digital.
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In a letter to an Unbound Academy official with a Lancaster office address, Secretary Angela Fitterer said her office has found “deficiencies” in all five criteria needed for approval to teach Keystone State students.
Pennsylvania’s Charter School law denotes a school must demonstrate sustainable support for the cyber charter school plan from teachers, parents and students. It must also exhibit the capacity to provide “comprehensive learning experiences,” enable students to meet academic standards, and abide by Section 1747(a) of the law, which pertains to governance, policy, facility and assessment.
“Artificial intelligence tools present unique opportunities in the classroom that educators across Pennsylvania are already exploring how to effectively, ethically and safely implement,” a spokeswoman for Fitterer told Fox News Digital.
“However, the AI instructional model being proposed by this school is untested and fails to delineate how artificial intelligence tools would be used to ensure that the education provided aligns with PA state standards,” she said.
In its application, Unbound cited its work with “2HR Learning” an “innovated educational approach that combines AI technology, personalized learning paths, and a focus on life skills development to revolutionize the learning experience,” according to the Scranton Times-Tribune.
However, Unbound saw success in Arizona, which approved an academy for the 2025-26 school year, while being rejected in three states besides Pennsylvania, according to the Arizona Republic.
Two hours are set aside for core instruction, and the rest of the day is geared toward students pursuing “personal interests” and life skills workshops.
Unbound Academy co-founder MacKenzie Price told the paper the Grand Canyon State was appealing because of its welcoming of school choice tenets.
Another state official on the frontier of educational evolution is Oklahoma Superintendent of Education Ryan Walters.
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Words reading “Artificial intelligence AI,” miniature of robot and toy hand are pictured in this illustration taken on Dec. 14, 2023. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo)
In recent months, Walters has spearheaded efforts to return the Bible to schools, root out foreign influence in curriculum, and AMIRA – a new literacy initiative, among other endeavors. His state is also set to appear before the Supreme Court this term in regard to interest in allowing a Catholic charter school to receive state funding.
Walters said he has not yet seen an application for Unbound or any other AI-powered charter school, but believes that if parents desire the option in the Sooner State, he will consider it.
“You have to show parental support that they’re asking for it,” he said.
“You also have to be very transparent. Where’s the technology based out of? Who is developing it? We do not want any situation where you’ve got a CCP or [similar] country, involved there with the technology. . . . You need to be very upfront. Where is the technology developed? What is the curriculum look like?”
With Oklahoma’s major agricultural sector, many schoolchildren work hours on their family farms when they’re not in class. Walters said virtual learning has helped Oklahoma families in the near-term, and suggested an AI school would have a similar setup.
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He said his state is always open to the next frontier of childhood education.
“Catholics have some of the most successful schools in our state in the country. They brought us a model that said we’d like to try out so many of the things that have worked for us in our private schools at a charter school. We can make it available for more kids,” he said.
“We appreciate the Catholic Church for putting the application before us [and] the radical atheists and teachers union folks – they’re dead wrong on this.”
Walters said – just as Harrisburg deemed the AI-powered charter school did not meet its qualifications – Oklahoma believes the new Catholic charter school met its criteria.
“This is the next frontier of school choice – we want more schools. We want more charter schools.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Unbound Academy for comment and further information on its other state applications.
