AI in Education Symposium: keeping the human in the loop

Symposium snapshot

Date: 24 April 2026

Location: 603 Queensberry Street, North Melbourne VIC 3051 and simulcast to regional academy centres in Bairnsdale, Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Mildura, Moe, Shepparton.

Number of attendees: 200 teachers, education support staff and school leaders

Sectors represented: government, Catholic and independent schools

Event highlights:

• Keynote from Associate Professor Matthew Harrison and Jess Rowlings on AI and inclusion
• Keynote from Associate Professor Joanne Blannin on rethinking assessment
• Keynote from Dr Scott Cameron on ethics and the future
• Participant insights and takeaways  

The first statewide AI in Education Symposium, brought together school and system leaders and teachers from government, Catholic, and independent schools across Victoria to explore the safe, ethical and effective use of AI in classrooms and schools. 

Keynote speakers 

Each keynote challenged us to think deeply about the human element of AI and reminded us that while technology can support the complex work of education, it can never replace the accumulated wisdom, lived experience, and essential human relationships that underpin teaching and learning. 

Associate Professor Matthew Harrison: AI and inclusion

'Always the human is at the very centre of everything, and we will remain at the centre.  Because teaching is about human interaction at the end of the day. It’s about relationships.  AI can do some amazing things, but it can't replace that human-to-human interaction.'

Jess Rowlings: AI and inclusion

‘We need to be accountable, we need to be transparent, people need to know whether they interacted with an AI or human. We've talked about the human involved in what we do and making sure the lived experiences of our kids are centred and reflected. It’s that idea of nothing about us without us.  We don't want to be doing things to kids; we want to be doing things with them.’

Associate Professor Joanne Blannin: Rethinking assessment

‘The teacher is the one who knows what matters, AI can’t do that. That is entirely the human in the loop, that is entirely the teacher at the centre, and that is all about you. There are no robots coming for our job. Humans will always want to learn from, with, and through humans. We have always needed collaborative learning. Sociology tells us over and over, it's how we fire our brains.’ 

Dr Scott Cameron: Ethics and the future

‘We know there's an accumulated wisdom that comes with teaching experience. Through our experiences, our experimentation, seeing what works for particular learners, we developed this knowledge and this expertise. GenAI is detached from the experiential learning in the classroom, and while it may look like it has this knowledge, this wisdom of classroom teaching, it’s not the same as the knowledge and wisdom our classroom teachers have through their experience. Teachers are the experts on teaching and learning.’ 

Participant insights 

Participants also shared their key takeaway from the day.

Lydia Lin, TEP25 alumni, Oakleigh Grammar 

‘There is no going back. We cannot avoid it and delay it, we have to be part of the conversation and stay ahead of the game. If our students are using these tools and it's actually helping them, then I think as teachers we need to know these tools even better and teach our students how to use them with more purpose, with more transparency, and how use them ethically.’

Mark Smith, TEP23 alumni, St. Aloysius College 

‘I think there are a lot of ways we can help improve the drudgery, in terms of organisation and the work teachers do behind the scenes of trying to manage our time so we can focus on the most important part, which is being in front of our students, face to face, to improve their learning outcomes.’ 

The symposium was just the beginning of a larger, ongoing conversation about the role of technology in schools. The Academy remains committed to building the collective capability of the education workforce, ensuring every teacher and leader feels equipped to lead with confidence and keep their students at the centre.