Several of the nation’s most prominent universities are working to weave diversity, equity, and inclusion priorities into artificial intelligence tools aimed at classrooms, according to a new report from the advocacy group Defending Education.
The report, highlighted by the Daily Wire, identifies the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Columbia University, and the University of California, Berkeley as institutions pushing AI initiatives that incorporate DEI concepts — a development that could shape how AI is used in schools long before most districts have fully adopted the technology.
Schools across the country are still in the early stages of integrating AI into classrooms. Over the next few years, the technology is expected to be used for everything from student research to helping teachers build lesson plans. The question of whether those tools should carry DEI priorities is emerging as the next major education fight.
MIT’s RAISE Initiative
At MIT, the report points to an initiative called “Responsible AI for Social Empowerment and Education,” or RAISE, which describes its goal as rethinking and inventing “a more positive and inclusive future of education and learning in the era of AI.”
The program promotes what it calls “equitable AI education” and offers what it describes as free, research-based AI curricula designed to help K-12 students “understand, question, and create with artificial intelligence.” According to the report, students in the program are taught about so-called “algorithmic bias” — a term often tied to the claim that AI systems are typically built by white and Asian men and reflect their perceived biases.
For the report’s authors, the initiative is notable given MIT’s recent moves in the other direction. The university eliminated its DEI office last year and cut the role of vice president for equity and inclusion. For an institution that appeared to be reprioritizing meritocracy, the report argues, RAISE either slipped through the cracks or MIT never intended to change course.
Columbia and Berkeley Programs
Columbia University, according to the report, runs a “Social Intervention Group” that promotes an initiative to advance “research, education, and training at the intersection of artificial intelligence and social good.” The university says the group’s vision is a “world where AI is used responsibly, ethically, and inclusively to address complex health, environmental, and social issues.”
Like MIT, Columbia took steps last year to roll back DEI priorities. Yet, the report notes, its AI program appears to have remained largely untouched.
At UC Berkeley, the report flags the “UC Berkeley AI Research Lab,” known as BAIR. The university says the lab “conducts cutting-edge research and projects, while supporting an inclusive community of researchers across AI and social science disciplines,” with research areas including “equity” and “environmental impacts.”
The program’s stated mission is to work toward “responsible and equitable AI.” One BAIR research project, titled “Linguistic Bias in Generative AI,” accuses ChatGPT of discriminating against people based on race and ethnicity for using “Standard American English.”
The report’s author, Casey Ryan, a writer and investigative reporter at Defending Education, calls that premise absurd and argues that if Berkeley is directing tax dollars toward concluding the English language is inherently racist, the school’s leadership should reconsider its priorities.
The Broader Push
The report contends that many universities publicly rolled back or at least appeared to roll back their DEI programs last year, but that their AI initiatives tell a different story. According to the report, these schools never abandoned promoting DEI — they pulled back just enough to avoid scrutiny while continuing to move forward with plans that now extend into reshaping the future of AI.
The concern outlined in the report is that universities intend to use taxpayer dollars to influence tech companies through research projects, training, and other forms of pressure — integrating DEI priorities into AI tools before schools can fully bring them into students’ learning experiences.
The report’s author argues the issue needs to be addressed at the state and federal levels, noting that even private universities receive federal grants. Elected officials, the report says, have a window to stop the effort before it becomes institutionalized and harder to reverse, ensuring AI benefits students rather than serving as another vehicle for politicized indoctrination.
Source: www.dailywire.com — https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-hidden-ai-battle-for-americas-classrooms