As a high school math teacher, I’ve spent 21 years with alternative education students—many navigating poverty, trauma, or systemic barriers—who have often felt pushed to the margins. I’ve learned that education isn’t just about mastering content; it’s about connection, identity, and trust. I use AI not to replace connection, but to deepen it, especially in math, where students too often feel unseen or unheard. 

I routinely ask my students to keep journals. This may seem counterintuitive—I teach math, not English—but I’ve learned that many students walk into my math class carrying untold stories of race, failure, shame, and invisibility. Math, with its perceived rigid, right-or-wrong structure, often leaves little room for the messiness of being human. 

So when Jason, one of my 11th graders, wrote in his math journal: “It’s more important to me that my teacher sees me as a person than if I get all the answers right,” it stopped me in my tracks. Here was a teenager navigating complex equations and even more complex emotions, reminding me that education isn’t about algorithms or assessments—it’s about belonging, relationships, and humanity.

I turned to ChatGPT to help summarize journal entries—not to replace my judgment but to sharpen it. It surfaced patterns I might have missed: anxiety about speaking up, appreciation for kindness, and the importance of being seen. AI didn’t just summarize responses—it gave me perspective.

I first approached AI with skepticism. Would it replace teachers? Would students become over-dependent? But after two years of thoughtful use, I’ve discovered something unexpected: AI hasn’t made my teaching less human—it’s deepened it, helping students see themselves as capable mathematicians.

In a recent school-wide survey, my students showed striking awareness of the tool’s purpose. Luis shared, “I need to learn geometry to qualify for an electrician apprentice program, so I can’t have AI do the work for me. It’s something I need to understand.” 

When Myra asked, “When will we ever use math in real life?” instead of offering a generic example about calculating rateof change, I used AI to co-create a lesson using real data on gender, income, and education. AI pointed me to current datasets from the U.S. Department of Labor, but it was our class discussion that brought the data to life. Together, we explored economic mobility, opportunity, and choice. 

Teacher insights must directly inform and guide the co-creation of AI training, ensuring it enhances instruction, mirrors students’ lived experiences, and supports deep, transferable learning. 

Jason’s voice is one of many calling us to rethink how we use AI in education. If we center students in this work, we won’t just innovate—we’ll transform.

Al Rabanera teaches math at La Vista High School in Fullerton, California.

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