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How AI is giving Northern Ireland teachers time back
How AI is giving Northern Ireland teachers time back
Nov 10, 2025
· 4 min read
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Lila Ibrahim
Chief Operating Officer, Google DeepMind
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What happens when you put powerful new technology directly into the hands of 100 teachers? An incredible six-month pilot program in Northern Ireland gave us the answer: they steer it in ways that are truly inspiring.
I had the privilege of meeting educators and administrators from the Northern Ireland Education Authority’s C2k program who had the opportunity to integrate Gemini and Google Workspace tools into their classrooms, and I was struck by the teachers’ ingenuity and the efficiencies they were able to achieve. The success of the pilot program is a result of a close partnership between C2k and Google for Education — Google brought the technology, and teachers utilized it to make a meaningful impact.
Their work underscores our core belief: AI is not a replacement for learning or teachers. It is a collaborative tool — and when grounded in learning science, it can make learning more accessible, handle time-consuming related tasks, and free educators to do what only they can uniquely do.
More than just efficient admin
While it’s still early, the results are inspiring. Each participating teacher reported saving an average of 10 hours per week with the help of Gemini, which isinfused with learning science principles. The teachers were then able to reinvest that time into student engagement and their own professional development.
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The pilot captured more than 600 unique use cases for Gemini, ranging from streamlining administrative work to brainstorming more engaging content. It's been incredible to see such teachers identify diverse use cases once they feel empowered to explore how Gemini can help.
For Chris Lowe, Head of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) at Ashfield Boys’ High School, the impact was immediate. “The time I saved using Gemini fundamentally allows me to do the job I want to do — and that is to teach.” Chris uses Gemini to draft letters to parents or create risk assessments for class outings, and NotebookLM to turn curriculum material into podcasts for exam preparation.
Personalizing learning and removing barriers
Beyond administrative tasks, teachers used Gemini to help create lessons in the Irish language and create more inclusive learning environments.
Alistair Hamill, Head of Geography from Lurgan College, used NotebookLM’s MindMap feature to create interactive visual representations of source material. He noted that this helped a neurodivergent student see the "big picture" rather than getting stuck in the details.