CASE STUDY · AI STRATEGY DAY
One day on site at Malaysia's Prince of Wales Island International School with leaders, teachers and support staff: a working party to shape the school's approach, hands-on tool sessions, and a strategy group for its most confident AI users.
School
POWIIS Tanjung Bungah, Penang. Nursery to Year 8, ages 3–13
Format
One day on site, three sessions
Participants
24 staff: teachers, teaching assistants, specialists and leaders
Date
THE RESULT
Staff left with a plan and tools they could use straight away
100%
of staff who participated rated the sessions effective at clarifying AI use and implementation.
78%
of staff who participated in the advanced session rated it 'very effective'.
53%
of staff felt unclear on acceptable AI use before the strategy day.
"Before this, we knew AI was something we needed to be thinking about, but we didn't necessarily know what that should look like as a school. [The sessions] helped with that, while also giving staff something useful for their own practice straight away."
Chene Beyers
Learning Technologies Lead, Prince of Wales Island International School
STARTING POINT
Ready for AI, but waiting for clarity
Before the visit, staff completed a survey (classroom teachers, specialists, leaders, teaching assistants and admin staff). It shaped every session on the day.
How clear was acceptable use of AI?
53% of staff felt unclear.
Very unclear
Somewhat unclear
Mostly clear
Very clear
How confident did staff feel using AI tools?
42% of staff felt confident or very confident
Not confident
Somewhat confident
Confident
Very confident
What would make the training day most useful?
Practicality above all.
Hands-on time
Classroom examples
Time-saving ideas
Which AI tools have staff already used?
Which safe tools could be added to the toolbelt?
ChatGPT
Canva AI
Gemini
79%
asked for intermediate-level training. 74% wanted more guidance on student use of AI and on school expectations and boundaries.
THE DAY
What staff asked for shaped every session
Each session was designed directly from the survey results.
Working party
Staff said: 53% unclear on acceptable use; 74% wanted guidance on student use and boundaries.
Purpose: how and why teachers and students use AI
Safeguarding and AI: the global direction of government guidance, KCSIE 2026 AI updates, product safety standards, data protection, deepfakes, and responding to incidents
POWIIS's AI strategy and framework: where to improve or clarify it, and how to embed and communicate it across the school
Long-term thinking: AI philosophy, digital resilience and wellbeing, productive struggle and the AI learning trap, balancing cognitive load
Next steps and stakeholder responsibilities
Teacher workshop
Staff said: hands-on time, classroom examples and time-saving ideas; already using ChatGPT, Canva AI and Gemini.
Advanced users & strategy
Staff said: 79% wanted intermediate training, with a confident group ready to go further.
AI policy: defining acceptable use, weighing the benefits and drawbacks, promoting the safe use of AI, and meeting data protection requirements
Vetting and approving safe AI tools for use across the school
Prompt engineering: writing clear, structured prompts that get more useful and reliable results
Critical judgement: questioning and checking AI outputs before relying on them
Vibe coding: building working apps by describing them in plain language
What the school left with
A clearer AI strategy and framework, with improvements identified and a plan to embed and communicate it across the school
Next steps and stakeholder responsibilities for taking the work forward
Safeguarding and policy groundwork: KCSIE 2026 AI updates, product safety standards, data protection, acceptable use, and how to vet and approve AI tools
Hands-on practice with tools staff could use straight away, including Gemini Notebook, Canva Code, Gemini Canvas and Google Vids
Student AI literacy resources: global frameworks, a curriculum guide, six demonstration tools and lesson plans
Advanced skills for confident users: prompt engineering, critical judgement and vibe coding
Slides and resources from all three sessions, shared with all staff
This was part of The AI series
IN THEIR WORDS
What staff said
"For me, a key takeaway was the importance of reflecting on our own AI knowledge and practice, while also considering where our students are in their AI journey. The working party discussion helped me think about how we can better guide students by first strengthening our own understanding and practice."
Art, Design & Technology Technician
"Steve was approachable, knowledgeable and really good at meeting people where they were, regardless of their confidence with AI. His expertise came through not just in his knowledge of the tools, but in his understanding of how AI is actually being used in schools, which made the guidance feel practical and relevant."
Chene Beyers
Learning Technologies Lead
"Very valuable training for people unfamiliar with or well established with AI. Interesting discussions on the future of AI and how this will impact schools. It is so necessary we, as teachers, are aware of the uses and dangers of AI if we are to be effective educators."
Sophia Murray
KS3 English Lead/Homeroom Teacher
Want a day like this for your school?
