Bridget Phillipson eyes AI’s potential to free up teachers’ time

Exclusive: education secretary exploring tools to compile student reports and assess writing and vocational skills

AI tools will soon be in use in classrooms across England, but the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, has one big question she wants answered: will they save time?

Attending a Department for Education-sponsored hackathon in central London last week, Phillipson listened as developers explained how their tools could compile pupil reports, improve writing samples and even assess the quality of soldering done by trainee electrical engineers.