Agents and Gems

At a recent webinar,' Gems and Agents: Managing workload and productivity with AI, led by Cheryl Shirley (Leo Academy Trust) and Mark Vickers (Royal Hospital School), with Bob Usher from LGfL, we explored the role of automating AI tools (Agents and Gems) to help with productivity, everyday efficiency and help with managing workload.

Google and Microsoft have built AI helpers directly into the office tools you already use every day (like your email, calendar, and documents).

• Google's Version AI : 'Gemini' is built right into your Gmail and Google Calendar. It can do things like read your emails and automatically add events to your calendar. You can try it out for free, though it caps how much you can use it each month unless you pay.
  
  
• Microsoft's Version AI: Microsoft's AI platform is called Copilot and operates within all its core apps such as outlook, excel and word . It does almost the same things as Google, but there is no free version

Both systems let you build your own permanent mini-helpers (Google calls them Gems, and Microsoft just calls them Agents). Think of these as teaching the AI a specific process for a recurring chore. 

What is an 'Agent'?

 An AI Agent is the next step up from a standard chatbot.

While a traditional chatbot simply answers questions when you type them, an AI Agent is a digital assistant designed to independently achieve a goal by planning, reasoning, and using actual tools.

Here is a simple analogy you can use to think about it, or explain it to others:

'A Standard Chatbot is like an Encyclopaedia'. If you ask it, "What are some different ways to teach fractions?", it will give you a list of ideas. But once it hands you that list, its job is done. It waits for you to tell it what to do next.

'An AI Agent is like having a fully autonomous Teaching Assistant (TA)'. Instead of just asking for ideas, you give them a goal. If you ask, "I need you to organise our upcoming trip to the London Natural History  Museum," an agent will provide a full, detailed plan, including opening times, routes to the venue, what's on at the museum, etc.    

 'An agent doesn't just give you text; it goes to work behind the scenes' 

With regular AI, you have to hold its hand and give it micro-instructions for every single step. With an Agent, you just give it the final goal, and it figures out the steps on its own.

What is a 'Gem'?

'Think of a Gem as your own custom-built, expert AI assistant that remembers exactly how you work'

During the training session, we investigated how to: Use AI to Tackle the Teaching Workload by

• Working smarter, not harder: automating the repetitive admin and routine tasks that eat into your evenings and weekends.
• Protecting your wellbeing: freeing up your mental space to focus on what matters most—high-quality teaching and supporting your students.
• Building your own digital assistants: Using Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini tools to streamline everything from lesson planning to data analysis.
  

"I prefer to think about productivity rather than workload, because our jobs
aren't really about reducing our workload. It's about keeping our workload
manageable and us being effective."
— Bob Usher, LGfL

Practical Examples of Tackling Workload Using Agents and Gems - 

• Custom Gems can guide report writing by prompting teachers through structured questions (rather than auto-generating a report).
• NotebookLM (Google's free tool) grounds AI responses in specific documents — safer than general Gemini for policy work or comparing quotes.
• Workspace Studio agents can notify staff when documents are edited or forms are submitted.
  

On Shifting Parental Mindsets Around AI Reports

"The immediate reaction of the parents in the room was, 'I do not want
teachers using AI to write reports.' And then when we drilled into how long it
takes a teacher to write a set of reports, um, and what else that time could be
used for... it was really interesting how quickly the mindset shifted."
— Mark Vickers, Royal Hospital School

So, what do you need to do as a school in terms of considering Agents and Gems?

Introducing AI agents doesn't mean giving everyone access all at once and hoping for the best. To make it work without overwhelming people, it helps to follow a thoughtful, step-by-step plan.

You need to set up the safety guardrails. Before anyone touches the technology, it is crucial to establish clear IT policies on how AI can be used and require everyone to log in using official work accounts. This keeps your data secure and prevents sensitive or confidential information from accidentally leaking into the public cloud.

 How to ensure you are keeping data safe and secure in an AI model in a school setting, staff expectations 

"I often hear this in schools where we say, 'well, we're using AI and we've just
told people that we're not going to input any sensitive information into AI
models.' ... If you haven't done that [set clear policies], you're already in a bit
of a pickle because otherwise people are just going everywhere to use it."
— Cheryl Shirley, Leo Academy Trust

Once the safety rules are in place, the secret is to start small. Don't try to automate your whole day right away. Instead, pick just one simple, pre-built routine to practice with—like having the AI generate a quick summary of your unread emails every morning. Getting comfortable with one small habit builds the confidence needed for bigger tasks later.

It is also important to target the right people. AI agents aren't a one-size-fits-all solution. At first, they are most valuable for roles that are heavy on paperwork and scheduling—like school leadership, business management, and SENCos. Classroom teachers generally benefit less from these background automation tools unless they use them as interactive coaching tools to help plan lessons or design resources.

Finally, remember that the technology is only as good as the people using it. To make this a success, you need a solid training plan (CPD). Staff shouldn't just be shown what buttons to click; they need to understand why and how to use these tools strategically. When people understand the tool's purpose, it shifts from a confusing piece of tech to a genuine time-saver.

For to watch to the whole training and discussion session, click it here