Already, school districts are incorporating new policies and strategies ahead of the 2023-24 school year to ensure the success and well-being of their students, and one way they’re doing this is by enhancing security. From clear backpack policies to substantial security modifications using ESSER funds, safety has become a top-of-mind issue for leaders nationwide. Now, similar to all other aspects of education, artificial intelligence may be proving itself beneficial in this critical area of K12 education, too.
“Artificial intelligence is transforming all parts of our lives,” says Peter Evans, CEO of Xtract One Technologies, a technology-driven threat detection and security solution that leverages AI. “Within a school environment, and in school security specifically, AI can benefit the schools in the same way that it benefits many other parts of society.”
Traditional security tactics, such as cameras and security staff, serve to observe what is happening in and around the school, he notes. However, unlike AI, these approaches can be flawed as they assume that a threat will occur at the right place at the right time, and someone or something will be there to catch it. But many times, this isn’t the case.
“Humans are fallible, and they are not present everywhere at all times,” he says. “However, AI can be.”
“With AI software loaded onto existing camera systems, systems can continually scan, detect and look for anomalies, behaviors, or threats, like a firearm. AI can very effectively watch dozens, or hundreds, of cameras and never miss an item of concern.”
Why? Well, according to Evans, AI has several advantages, including the fact that it doesn’t get fatigued or distracted and can scale seamlessly to provide both a “continuous watchdog” and digital insights that help security staff to be armed proactively with the knowledge and information needed before addressing the current threat.
Similarly, AI is capable of utilizing certain specifications that metal detectors can’t. For instance, the software has been designed to screen students at the entrance of school buildings and only alert staff when a weapon is detected while ignoring “benign objects,” including smartphones or keys.
“This new approach to weapons screening is the conundrum that school administrators have been struggling with for so long—how to screen for weapons in a manner that is fast and effective, and does not radically change the operations of the school and the behaviors of the students.”
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Traditional security tactics often come with unintended consequences for the school environment. Numerous studies point to the emotional and psychological toll metal detectors and other efforts to harden schools have on students. But according to Evans, AI solutions can foster a more inviting entry for students.
“Psychologically, traditional walk-through metal detectors are associated with places like prisons and penitentiaries, and therefore are unintentionally branding the school as a similar sort of environment,” he says. “On the other hand, AI systems can provide a welcoming experience to students, as their look is less severe.
“Additionally, without the need for students to hand over their personal items and remove their items from their being, they can simply ‘walk right in’ to the school.”
He also notes that such technology has helped streamline the entrance process for schools and relieve headaches for school staff, citing “nothing other than exceptional” feedback from educators and leaders.
“One school that recently adopted AI-based weapons screening solutions used to randomly screen about 200 of its students entering the school every day,” he explains. “This was an incomplete security screening solution, but the only solution they could implement in their allotted timeframe—the traditional walk-through metal detectors would have significantly slowed down the entry of its 1,400 students.”
How it works
Similar to other AI-powered tools like ChatGPT, the software must be fed the information and trained on exactly how to respond. When it comes to security, the process is no different.
“AI-based weapons detection systems use a combination of purpose-built sensors with artificial intelligence software to discern the characteristics of objects that are walking through the sensors,” Evans says.
He explains that the system’s sensors and the trained artificial intelligence engines are able to tell the difference between specific items students bring into the school.
“For example, it can detect the differences between a smartphone, keys, hydro flask bottle, or a knife or a firearm,” he says. “This way, it can alert only on those items that are a threat, versus alerting on all metal items the system detects.”
