Australian schools expand use of education tech & AI

Australian schools are increasing their use of education technology, according to new research from Campion Education, with particularly strong interest in education-specific generative AI.

More than half of respondents, 56%, said they planned to expand their use of education technology over the next 12 months. The report found 60% were extremely interested in education-specific generative AI, placing it ahead of several other technology categories.

The findings point to broad use of digital systems across teaching and learning. School platforms and content systems were the most consistently used category at every stage measured, ranging from 57% in lesson preparation to 85% in student wellbeing.

General-purpose generative AI has also begun to find a place in routine teaching tasks, with 45% of respondents using it for planning and 55% for lesson preparation.

Teaching and learning tools were most commonly used in student practice and application, where half of respondents reported using them. In classroom teaching, usage stood at 46%.

Brett Watson, General Manager of Growth at Campion Group, said the results suggested schools were making more deliberate decisions about where digital tools fit into their work.

"Technology can now support schools across the full teaching journey - from planning and lesson preparation to classroom learning, assessment, reporting and student wellbeing," Watson said.

"What's important is that schools are focused on technology that aligns with learning goals, works with their existing systems and processes, and makes a practical difference for teachers and students."

Expansion plans

Lesson preparation and resources emerged as the main area for further investment, with 72% of respondents saying they were very interested in increasing technology use in that part of school activity.

By category, education-specific generative AI recorded the strongest interest for expansion at 60%. Teaching and learning tools followed at 55%, while general-purpose generative AI was close behind at 53%.

Watson said the level of interest in tailored AI products reflected problems schools still wanted technology to address.

"The interest in education-specific AI is evidence of unresolved needs in schools which schools are hopeful could be solved with this new technology.

"However, schools are not pursuing technology for its own sake. They want education-specific technology solutions that are aligned to the Australian curriculum - tools that support quality teaching, save teachers time and integrate smoothly into established school workflows."

Policy framework

The research also suggests many schools have already established rules around the use of newer digital tools. Academic integrity policies were in place at 84% of respondent schools, while 83% had data privacy policies.

Formal policies governing student use of generative AI were reported by 61% of schools, indicating governance is developing alongside adoption as schools weigh the use of AI in classrooms and administration.

Satisfaction with more established systems remained solid. Productivity and organisational tools received the highest average satisfaction score at 7.1 out of 10, while teaching and learning tools and school platforms and content systems each scored 6.7.

The report examined technology use across the teaching journey, along with satisfaction, expansion priorities, governance and purchasing considerations. The research drew on 126 survey respondents and in-depth interviews with five school leaders.

Campion is one of the larger education suppliers in the Australian market, working with more than 3,000 schools and more than 700,000 students. Its activities span print and digital resources, stationery, library services, book hire and education technology products.

Watson said schools were moving beyond experimentation and putting more formal structures around adoption decisions.

"Schools are now building the policy, capability and confidence needed to use emerging technology well, but more is needed to support schools with education-specific tech that move away from generic, catch-all products."