Wilson: It Is Absurd To Envision A Bright Future For Our Children When The DoE Is Being 'Dismantled'

2 days ago

During Tuesday's House Education Committee hearing, Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL) discussed the Trump Administration's push to dismantle the Department of Education.

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Transcript

00:00With that, the representative from Florida, Ms. Wilson, is recognized for five minutes.

00:04Thank you, Chairman Kiley and Ranking Member Bonamici, for today's hearing. Thank you so much.

00:11And thank you to our witnesses for being here today. As you know, public schools are the

00:19backbone of our democracy. And as AI continues to be implemented in our education system,

00:28we must work in addressing its potential and worry about the disparities that come

00:35with this implementation. Clearly, education has some big challenges with AI, but this committee

00:46is missing the real crisis, the dismantling of the Department of Education. It's absurd

00:56to envision a bright future for our students when the Office of Education Technology,

01:02vital for AI oversight, has just been shut down. And it's even more absurd for this subcommittee

01:12to ignore the wrecking ball crashing into our public school systems across the nation

01:20right now by abolishing the Department of Education. This is like worrying about the

01:28ship's Wi-Fi access while the Titanic is sinking. With this, I have a few questions.

01:39Ms. Note, can AI work without human input? And what are the consequences of gutting

01:48the very workforce responsible for ensuring AI is used ethically and effectively?

02:00So, can AI work without human input? No. And in fact, generative AI and artificial intelligence

02:06systems have to be trained on both our responses and the data that's being used. Now, let's just

02:14talk about what happens when we take away data that could be used to train these systems

02:21effectively alongside humans. Right now, we're seeing families lose access to information on

02:29the college and career scorecard, being able to make critical decisions about what's happening

02:34or what choices they make with the loss of iPads data, or the loss of EdFacts data,

02:39or if you're moving from one community to the other, not being able to know the quality of

02:44your schools or how to compare one school to the other. This vital support that is provided not

02:50just by the humans who are helping guide local states, excuse me, local districts and states,

02:56but also that are guiding families through the provision of open access datasets and knowledge

03:02is a critical role that if we lose, our families will be less informed,

03:07our students will be less prepared, and our educators will be left without the resources

03:12they need. Amen. Ms. Note, with the Office of Civil Rights being sidelined or weakened,

03:22how are students, particularly those from marginalized communities, supposed to ensure

03:31their rights are protected if AI tools amplify existing disparities? Because they will.

03:44I want to return to, I don't think an educator wants to harm a student, but they need to know

03:50about these tools. They need to know about the tools that are being used. They need to have

03:55research about what's the most effective tool in order to make the right choice for a student.

04:01Every educator in this country wants students to succeed. I know that because I meet them every

04:07single day. But they don't necessarily have the expertise to know that this tool or that tool is

04:13better, that the $99 edition of Conmigo is better than the free tutor. And they don't have the

04:19resources to make those choices and to navigate those deep, deep challenges that they have to

04:26meet young people. If we want to overcome achievement gaps, we need to make sure that

04:30our educators have the knowledge, expertise, and capacity to make the right choices for students

04:36alongside families. That can only happen when we have that knowledge, when we have that capacity,

04:42that data, and that expertise. Ms. Note, how do we prevent AI from becoming just another tool

04:51that benefits already advantaged and leaves behind the same black and brown students

04:59who have historically been underserved and who have no computers?

05:07Thank you. I think equitable access is something every single witness has talked about. And so I

05:12think Congress needs to renew their investment in public connectivity infrastructure. They need to

05:18have targeted programs to ensure that all communities have access to the technology,

05:23the hardware, reliable internet connectivity, and the adequate technical support to benefit

05:30every community in this country. Thank you. I yield back.

Wilson: It Is Absurd To Envision A Bright Future For Our Children When The DoE Is Being 'Dismantled'

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