Dinowitz on Canva, VPNs, and filter circumvention in schools
Dinowitz presses on whether students can access AI tools through approved vendor subscriptions like Canva, and raises VPNs as a way students bypass DOE filters. Strickland acknowledges VPNs may be used but insists students are supposed to use the DOE network. Dinowitz notes multiple principals report students using ChatGPT in class.
There are a number of tools.
I mean, I'm looking at this one right here, which says...
There are a number of tools on your web.
Canva is one of them.
There's another one, Observe AI.
It must be hundreds of vendors that use these AI tools.
And when you say open up to students, are you telling me that if you give a fifth grader a Chromebook, they don't go on to the school's subscription for Canva and use those AI tools?
I'll be clear on the devices.
So a Chromebook is a user device.
Right.
It comes with the Chrome browser.
When the student logs into the DUE network, we filter a lot of websites so that they do not have access to them.
In those cases, that's how we can control access to something like ChatGPT.
I don't know if Canva is open to students.
That's really just a presentation piece of software.
Our teachers use that extensively.
There are a number of vendors on your website that are approved vendors that have AI tools that are available for schools to buy.
But I just want to make sure I understand your testimony that schools buy these products, these subscriptions with AI tools, but students don't or are unable to use these specific components.
That is correct.
Okay, I have a number of teachers and principals who would disagree with you.
And I would also add, I'm not sure if you're aware,
Are you aware of VPNs?
Have you heard of this magic tool?
Absolutely.
Are you aware that they are used in schools?
In some cases, they may be, yes, but the students are supposed to log into the DUE network and use the DUE network for their work.
Right.
Okay.
I think the challenge we're facing already is that you've approved vendors that have AI tools, student-facing AI tools, and we've had
reports from teachers that these are being used in the classroom, where students use them, where students use ChatGPT or Gemini in the classroom, and they're somehow getting around your filters.
But let's pretend for a second that no student is able to access these student-facing AI tools.
You have still approved vendors that have AI tools, including, according to your testimony, Google, Google Gemini, correct?
Correct.
And what empirical evidence or peer-reviewed journals has the DOE looked at to determine that this is for the betterment of our students'education and their cognitive development?
I'll turn it to the pedagogics.
Okay, thank you.
See here, red means go.
So make sure the red light's on.