Copilot in Schools: Privacy, Policies, Prompting Tips & the Real Limits of AI for Teachers

In this episode of Teacher’s AI Café, Kane sits down with a Western Australian Digital Technologies teacher to explore what artificial intelligence is really doing to coding, classrooms, and professional judgment. From the frustrations of AI rewriting perfectly good code to the practical realities of rolling out Microsoft Copilot in a school setting, the conversation moves beyond hype and into lived experience. They touch on data privacy, age restrictions, staff professional learning, and the growing question of whether schools should commit to a single, trackable AI platform. At its core, this episode asks a critical question for educators: how do we embrace powerful new tools while ensuring that teacher expertise, responsibility, and discernment remain firmly at the centre?

00:00 Welcome to Teacher’s AI Cafe (what this show is about)

00:24 Meet David: his teaching & edtech journey

01:37 From coding hype to AI-assisted coding in class

03:29 Vibe coding reality check: refactoring, bloat & breaking changes

06:14 Will AI replace developers? The job-market debate

07:09 Private school AI rollout: early exploration, privacy & platform trials

09:55 Microsoft vs Google vs Apple: platform lock-in and the AI arms race

17:27 Copilot in school: age rules, blocking other tools & safety tracking

19:31 Staff PD wins & hilarious Copilot fails (Word doc image, “don’t want to talk”)

24:04 Using AI wisely: environmental impact and when not to bother

25:07 When AI Edits Go Sideways: Knowing When It’s the Wrong Tool

25:36 Can Copilot Actually Make a Decent PowerPoint? (Gamma vs NotebookLM)

27:26 Free vs Paid Copilot: Document Access, Exports, and Real-World Limits

28:25 School Rollout Plan: Termly PD, AI ‘Brews’, and a Monthly Newsletter

30:51 Students & Staff on the Same Platform (and the ‘Use Copilot’ Moment)

33:28 Advice for Teachers Starting with AI: Begin with What Your School Provides

35:27 AI for Health & Fitness: Great Ideas, Dangerous Overconfidence

42:38 Teacher Expertise First: Verification, Ownership, and Smart Classroom Use

45:02 Wrapping Up: Staying Critical, Hype vs Reality, and What’s Next

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