Teachers across Scotland have issued a stark warning that artificial intelligence poses a severe threat to intensify rising levels of racism and misogyny within the nation's educational institutions. Powerful AI technologies now enable the rapid fabrication of lifelike audio and video content, which can be generated within seconds to appear entirely genuine.
Union Calls for Immediate Action
At its annual conference, the NASUWT teaching union highlighted that without decisive intervention, AI tools could be exploited to amplify abuse already fuelled by social media platforms. Matt Wrack of NASUWT emphasised the gravity of the situation, stating that AI represents a potential danger to the safety and wellbeing of both children and school staff.
Escalating Online Harassment
Educators are currently grappling with a significant increase in racist, misogynistic, and anti-immigrant rhetoric propagated through social media, which has led to numerous incidents of harassment, threats, and even violence. The union warns that AI threatens to turbocharge this existing menace, making it a critical challenge for the next Scottish Government to address.
Key demands include equipping young people and teachers with the necessary tools to identify and counteract online disinformation, alongside implementing stricter regulations on AI usage. AI systems can now produce convincing fake images almost instantaneously, and advanced tools allow for the creation of deepfake videos by superimposing faces onto others or generating entirely new, realistic videos from simple text prompts.
Voice Replication and Deepfake Dangers
When combined with technology capable of replicating human voices, these AI capabilities raise fears among educators that they could be weaponised to spread disinformation and hate speech more effectively. Teachers have reported alarming social media trends where recordings of them have been manipulated using AI to falsely depict them shouting and swearing at pupils.
In more extreme cases, children have utilised AI to generate sexual and violent images of teachers, which are then shared online. Some educators have been forced to take sick leave after footage featuring their likeness superimposed onto pornographic films was circulated. Additionally, fake social media accounts using teachers' names are being established, with one local authority describing such content as humiliating, offensive, violent, and sometimes sexual in nature.
Broader Concerns Over School Safety
The union is also advocating for a greater focus on addressing violence, abuse, and disruption within schools more broadly. The rapid advancement of AI technology necessitates urgent policy responses to safeguard educational environments and protect both staff and students from digital harm.
