AI Algebra Teaching Assistant for Students and Teachers

What it is for

Education & Learning

The system supports algebra instruction in NYC Public Schools by generating curriculum-grounded text responses to prompts entered by students or teachers, based exclusively on the Illustrative Math curriculum.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Run by: NYC Public Schools (NYCPS)
Where: No fixed location
Kept: No data retained
Shared with: Not stated by the NYC Office of Technology and Innovation.
Your copy: You cannot see the data it holds about you. What you can do

What it is for

Education & Learning

This tool is a generative AI assistant used daily in NYC Public Schools that answers algebra questions posed by students and teachers. It draws exclusively on curriculum from Illustrative Math to compose text responses. No identifying information about users is collected or retained. The system was developed with technical guidance from Microsoft using their generative AI platform.

What it collects and what happens to it

Data taken in

About behaviour

Anonymized data

Text prompts entered by students or teachers requesting algebra help. No identifying information is attached to these prompts; the register states no identifying information is collected or disclosed.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Processing

Language Models

A large language model (LLM) trained exclusively on Illustrative Math curriculum, hosted on the NYC Public Schools Division of Instructional and Information Technology AI platform, with technical guidance and code modules from Microsoft.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

What it does

Creating (Generative AI)

Human decides

The system generates text responses to algebra prompts. Although the register marks autonomy as 'fully autonomous,' the system only runs when a student or teacher actively submits a prompt — a person decides whether to use and act on the output.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Understanding (Semantic AI)

Human decides

The system interprets the meaning of algebra-related text prompts to retrieve and ground responses in relevant Illustrative Math curriculum content.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Outputs

Generated content

Anonymized data

Text responses generated by the LLM in reply to algebra prompts, composed using the Illustrative Math curriculum. Outputs are advisory educational content; no identifying information about users is produced.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Run by

NYC Public Schools (NYCPS)

NYC Public Schools, through its Division of Instructional and Information Technology, deploys and operates the Algebra Teaching Assistant on its AI platform for daily use by students and teachers.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Built by

Microsoft

Microsoft provided technical guidance for their emerging generative AI technology and built some small modules of code for the specific Teaching Assistant use cases. The engagement was at no cost.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Kept for

No data retained

The register states no identifying information is collected or disclosed. No user data retention policy is described, consistent with the absence of personal data collection.
Duration: Not applicable — no identifying data collected

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Shared with

Not available to me

No identifying information is collected or disclosed by this system. There is no personal data record for an individual user to access.

NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report

Stored

Not stated by the NYC Office of Technology and Innovation.

How to read the colours

Can it identify you?

Anonymized data: Data about people with the link to who is broken. Stripped of identifiers, blurred, aggregated, or noised so this system can’t reasonably tie a record back to an individual.
Pseudonymous data: Each person’s data is tied to a token (hash, ID, template) that lets this system recognise the same person across events, but the token itself doesn’t reveal a name. Reidentification is possible with extra information.
Identifiable data: The data either contains a direct identifier (name, address, account name, recognisable face or voice, plate number) or carries a token this system uses to look up legal identity during processing.

Who completes the loop?

Human decides: This mode suggests; a person decides what to do next. The AI is always advisory — a human is in the loop on every decision. Example: a triage tool ranks cases for a clinician who chooses which to see first.
Human executes: This mode decides; a person carries out the result. Example: an optimizer plans the day’s trash-collection routes, and drivers run them.
Autonomous: This mode decides and acts on its own. No person reviews each decision or carries out the resulting action.

Definitions from the DTPR standard. Amber is about your data, violet about who decides. The fuller the shape and the deeper the colour, the more identifying the data or the less a person is involved.

What you can do

Ask about this system

Questions go to the NYC Office of Technology and Innovation, not the vendor.

Your rights

Right to Be Informed of AI UseStudents and teachers interact with a disclosed AI system — the tool is presented as an AI teaching assistant. Users should be informed they are engaging with a generative AI, not a human tutor. Contact NYC Public Schools Division of Instructional and Information Technology for further information.
Right to Algorithmic TransparencyThe system's operation is publicly documented in the NYC Algorithmic Tools Compliance Report. Users may learn that responses are generated by a large language model trained exclusively on Illustrative Math curriculum. No further technical documentation is currently referenced in the register.

Risks and safeguards

Civil liberties harmAI-generated algebra content may contain errors, hallucinations, or curriculum-misaligned responses that mislead students.Safeguard: The LLM is trained exclusively on Illustrative Math curriculum, scoping responses to a defined educational domain. Teachers remain available to review and correct AI outputs, and the tool is positioned as a supplementary resource rather than an authoritative source.