Leveraging AI to Redesign Learning and Engagement in Rural Schools: The LIFToFFS Model
Rural schools face persistent challenges such as low student engagement, educator burnout, and growing mental health concerns. These issues jeopardize academic achievement, educator retention, and well-being, making innovative solutions critical for sustaining quality education in underresourced rural communities.
To address these issues, Wisconsin’s Cooperative Educational Service Agency #4 (CESA 4) developed a model to redesign Tier 1 universal classroom instruction in rural districts. (Tier 1 instruction is high-quality, school-wide teaching for all students, focusing on core skills.)
CESA 4's Learning Innovations for the Teaching of Future-Focused Students (LIFToFFS) model aims to increase K–12 educator capacity to facilitate personalized, competency-based educational opportunities and support students' development of durable skills to promote comprehensive readiness for a rapidly evolving future.
The model integrates AI tools into the classroom so students have more say in what and how they learn while also enabling more efficient and engaging instructional practices. The model supports educators through training, coaching, and peer networking.
AIR is partnering with CESA 4 to evaluate the LIFToFFS model during its second pilot year in school year 2025–26.
AIR's Evaluation of the LIFToFFS Model
AIR will conduct a rapid-cycle evaluation in spring 2026 to examine implementation strategies and identify conditions in which LIFToFFS thrives in rural classrooms. The evaluation will include short co-learning cycles for continuous improvement and analysis of how AI integration influences student engagement and educator capacity.
Findings will inform refinement of the LIFToFFS model as interest in AI-driven models grows statewide and nationally. Results will also provide actionable insights for policy and practice while laying the foundation for future research and partnerships.
