Editor’s note: To mark new milestones in AI-powered learning, we’re sharing how Henry County Public Schools in Kentucky successfully closed critical achievement gaps using Gemini for education. Jim Masters, the district’s superintendent, explains how they have integrated Gemini to provide individualized, rubric-aligned writing feedback while prioritizing human connection in the classroom.
At Henry County Public Schools, a medium-sized rural school district in the Kentucky/Appalachia region, we serve our community with a simple belief: technology should never be a flashy, expensive novelty. It must be an intentional, evidence-based tool that closes achievement gaps, supports our teachers, and enriches human interaction.
My goal was to adopt AI responsibly and integrate these tools in a thoughtful way. We first worked to cultivate a strong culture and effective framework—and then implemented a strategy to introduce Gemini to streamline feedback for state writing prompts.
Provide written feedback in scale
High school writing feedback was a hurdle for us. With 180 assigned students per teacher, on average, our teachers simply do not have enough hours in the school day to provide the deeply nuanced, rubric-specific feedback each student needs, especially while balancing lesson preparation, grading, and countless other daily responsibilities.
While researching options, we found that the state tests were using another company’s AI-powered scoring software. However, that particular platform proved prohibitive for our district, prompting us to seek different avenues. Since we are already a Google for Education district, we decided to try Gemini – at no additional cost. To sharpen accuracy, our curriculum specialists and veteran teachers worked with the administration to test Gemini against the state rubric and grade we previously received. We tested until Gemini’s feedback matched what the state provided.
Enables educators to deliver personalized instruction
With Gemini, we established a feedback loop that maintains academic standards and recovers thousands of instructional hours. Gemini helps handle the repetitive aspects of providing personalized, state rubric feedback on writing assignments, but teachers review feedback before sharing it back with students. Ultimately, Gemini helps educators provide high-quality, personalized instruction while freeing up more time to help students.
Improving student outcomes
The district measures the program’s success through student scores on state assessments. Before implementing Gemini-assisted writing feedback, 33% of students were rated at the beginner level, indicating below-grade performance. After this, 15% of the students moved out of the beginner group to reach, approach or exceed grade level expectations.
As I reach retirement after 29 years in education, I look back on this journey with immense pride in our team. We closed achievement gaps and built a culture where students are looked after and staff are supported. By keeping our focus human-centered and our methods evidence-based, Henry County Public Schools has proven that AI doesn’t have to diminish critical thinking—it can be the very key that unlocks it.