Alpha Schools: The Future of Learning
Every day, teachers narrow the restrictions on students using artificial intelligence in schools. But what if your teacher is artificial intelligence?
Enter the Alpha School, a private school that is taught using complete artificial intelligence integration. Students spend two hours a day in one-on-one academic sessions entirely educated by AI, leaving four hours for out-of-the-box experimental learning. Originally developed by founder Mackenzie Price, the Alpha School began in Texas in 2014 and now spans over 15 locations across the country, including New York City in Lower Manhattan. This innovation is both revolutionizing and challenging the education industry.
At the Alpha School, each student learns one-on-one with an artificial intelligence learning platform that is essentially like their personal tutor. These platforms then work in tandem with websites such as IXL for math and Duolingo for language to give students the most help they need across all subjects. Associate Director of Academic AI Technology at Riverdale, Mr. Matthijs Van Mierlo, explains, “what these companies and educational institutions do is they find ways to put guardrails around it, so that it won’t just complete all the work for you.” These environments give each student the help and attention they need to learn at a rapid pace, rather than doing their assignments for them. As Director of the Learning Research team at Riverdale, Ms. Jenny Buck explains: “AI [is] a tool to help…the teachers access something called learning differentiation…[which is when] we have to take the needs of our kids and create a foundation and lesson plans that are accessible.” These one-on-one sessions give each student a tailored experience that expedites their learning, so much so that, according to the Alpha School, students improve their scores almost three times faster on standardized tests than at other schools.
On the other hand, this learning environment limits peer collaboration, which is an essential element of education. Despite having time to work with one another outside of academics, Ms. Buck believes, “kids learn better through student talk,” meaning students also need time together in the classroom. A group environment is not only essential to proper socialization, but it is also crucial to a student’s learning process.
Furthermore, English teacher Mr. Tyler Telford voices his worries about this individualized method: “The answers become split into right or wrong versus in a classroom discussion…[where] often the questions that are worth asking are ambiguous and debatable,” he says. In agreement, Ms. Buck said, “learning about perspectives just helps you create a better understanding and learn about how people perceive something.”
Generally, educators at Riverdale find fault in this aspect of the Alpha School. In an age of increasing polarization of thought, these foundations of discourse are something that this institution lacks in an academic setting, yet they are necessary life skills for students. Ms. Buck explained, “ultimately…we’re always going to have to be a team player in our professional work, whatever we decide to do, post-college or post-school, whatever that looks like, we’re always going to have to work with humans.”
Outside of the classroom, students at the Alpha School become equipped with life skills that challenge their creativity, foster collaboration, and push them out of their comfort zones. After two hours of academics, students work on projects for an additional four hours that not only simulate, but also immerse them in different career paths. From practicing public speaking to experimenting in outdoor education, students have the opportunity to learn more about topics that would not otherwise be discussed in a traditional school setting, but are nevertheless viable career options. For example, in a lesson about financial literacy, students were tasked with renting and managing their own Airbnb. Reflecting on this experience, a student says in an interview on the Alpha School website, “Rather than just being in a classroom, it’s really cool to see us doing this for real.”
While the Two-Hour Learning model lacks an element of tangibility, students receive hands-on learning through these out-of-the-box lessons, which can actually enhance their academic performances by highlighting their strengths and advancing their abilities in creative problem-solving. Furthermore, Ms. Buck tells us that “if a kid is really struggling with their academics, we talk to their art teachers, we talk to the music teachers, we talk to the sports coaches to… see how they are performing in other areas so we can…capitalize on those strengths.” These workshops serve as an additional tool to educate and support the widest possible spectrum of learning styles.
The Alpha School takes a novel and innovative approach to learning, and like any new idea, it has both its strengths and weaknesses. While some of their methods of education allow for a wider spectrum of learning, other methods limit discourse, an idea central to Riverdale’s core values. Nevertheless, RCS is always looking to grow and adapt its lessons to take the most effective approach to learning.
Furthermore, with regards to AI integration at Riverdale, Mr. Van Mierlo says, “everything we’re looking at is always going to be kind of like an addendum or an extra to something that is in a class, but it’s never going to replace.” Additionally, Mr. Telford believes that Riverdale can learn from the Alpha School’s out-of-the-box learning approach and would like to incorporate more of it into the curriculum. He wonders about “any opportunity for… students at Riverdale to go to other schools and to see different ways that learning happens, and then from that to just generate proposals for what we might choose to adopt here.”
Above all, Riverdale will uphold its values of discourse and discussion, but the Alpha School offers some prescient ideas about the incorporation of different learning models into our curriculum.
