Overworked and understaffed: Special ed teachers turn to AI for help

Mary Acebu, a special education teacher at Riverview Middle School in Bay Point, Calif., works with a student during a math lesson. She says using AI to help with the paperwork part of her job allows her to spend more time interacting with her students in a meaningful way. Talia Herman for NPR hide caption toggle caption Talia Herman for NPR Editor's note: NPR uses only the first names of minors in this story because it discusses their learning disabilities and placement in special education. BAY POINT, Calif. — The sun would just be rising when teacher Mary Acebu began her days. She'd blast music on the way to work to get energized and get to her classroom by 6:30 to prepare for her students' arrival at 8. Often, it'd be dark by the time she headed home, sometimes with paperwork in tow. Like so many special education teachers around the country, this was Acebu's life for much of the 10 years she's been teaching at Riverview Middle School, in this small, unincorporated northern California town. "I don't do that anymore," she says with a laugh. That's because Acebu has been experimenting with artificial intelligence for the last two years to get through paperwork more quickly and says it's helped her instead use precious time for student interaction. "I have time to talk to the kiddos and really build those relationships," she says, "instead of sitting here in front of my computer." For years, schools nationwide have struggled with hiring and retaining special educators. …