Zero Trust in the Classroom

Doubt, suspicion, and anxiety must not outweigh love in the classroom. Zero trust has no place, but authentic relationships do.

I don’t want to be the technology police. As a teacher, policing and policies feel hollow. I may be in denial, but I don’t think they should be at the forefront of Christian education. I cannot see how using AI relates to the task of forming immortal souls.  

As an educator, I don’t want to devote time to learning about and using large language models, but I also can’t ignore them. Within the last five years, every school district, every private school, and every home school co-op has revised its academic integrity policies with common phrases like “using artificial intelligence responsibly.” But what does artificial intelligence have to do with true education? And who is acting “responsibly” in this use—the teacher or the student? 

Authentication 
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In computer science, two-factor authentication is a component of a security concept known as “zero trust.” It is a negative term because two-factor authentication is designed to protect accounts. That is what happens when a website or app sends you a two-factor authentication request, requiring a six-digit code every time you log in. It must ensure that you are who you say you are. The person trying to log in must (1) know something that only the account holder can know and (2) have something in their possession that only the account holder will have, be it phone, computer, or security key. This authentication is between the human and the system. 
The zero-trust model in computer science, of course, uses basic facts. It is designed to protect accounts and information. It assumes an attack. At the same time, it is an authentication approach built on trust and knowledge, a concept mirrored in the student-teacher relationship.

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