Manitoba consultations on AI chatbot, social media ban in class to begin in 'coming months'

Tech beneficial but precautions required, educators say

Winnipeg school divisions are focusing on their own guidelines around artificial intelligence for this upcoming school year as they await direction on a planned ban on chatbots.

The Manitoba government said this spring classrooms could be the first place where children are banned from using social media and AI chatbots as it moves to restrict use of those platforms for all youths under 16.

No timeline was given as to when the ban would be implemented. Education Minister Tracy Schmidt said in a statement Tuesday her department will be consulting education sector partners on guiding principles "in the coming months" to finalize the guidelines.

At Pembina Trails School Division, classrooms are using artificial intelligence for things such as planning and making different reading assignments based on the reading level.

Michelle Carlos, library learning commons consultant and digital coach at the division, said AI can be a valuable tool when used appropriately but the division is taking its time to ensure there are good guidelines in place.

"I think some of the challenges are having teachers and adults, and even parents, be aware of the technology and know how it works before we put it in the hands of students," she said Thursday.

Carlos said the division wants students to learn when using AI rather than letting the technology do the work for them.

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"Fact-checking, data privacy and safety, ethical use — those are all the things we're having conversations with kids about in classrooms," she said.

Schmidt said the final guidelines will help teachers and school leadership make ethical and safe decisions about AI use.

The Manitoba Teachers' Society — which has previously raised concerns about a complete ban on artificial intelligence and social media — said Wednesday it's been in discussions with the province to address privacy and security concerns surrounding the technology.

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President Lillian Klausen said Wednesday there needs to be oversight by teachers when the technology is being used in classrooms, but there are benefits.

"If we are using some reading materials with students and we need to change some of the reading levels so that it's accessible to all students, … we can use AI to convert or to adapt" the text, she said.

Louis Riel School Division, which is developing its own AI agents, said it shares concerns about the risks unregulated AI and social media pose to young people.

The division said in a statement Wednesday the purpose-built tools— which range from an agent that helps write personalized report cards to one that guides students through lessons without giving them the answers — are an alternative to letting staff and students use commercial chatbots without any guidance.

"They are designed with human judgment, safety, and genuine benefit as the foundation, not engagement, not convenience, and not profit," the statement said.

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Klausen said teachers use YouTube and platforms catering to classrooms, but social media apps such as Instagram or TikTok are already strictly limited.

Louis Riel School Division said YouTube is allowed across all grade levels but moderated for students from kindergarten to Grade 8, with content containing violence, hate speech, adult themes or misinformation filtered out.

The province banned cellphone use in classrooms in 2024.

With files from Mike Arsenault and Alana Cole