Vilseck High School students explore World War I through AI “Letter from the Front” project
VILSECK, Germany — Students in Mr. Swenty’s class at Vilseck High School explored the realities of World War I through a writing and presentation project titled “The AI World War I ‘Letter from the Front.’” The assignment challenged students to assume the roles of individuals living during the war—including soldiers, nurses and civilians—and write letters home from those perspectives.
To complete the project, students incorporated historically accurate details about wartime technology, trench warfare, total war and the human cost of the conflict. Digital tools, including artificial intelligence and Schoology, supported student research, drafting and revision while reinforcing responsible use of technology in the classroom.
“The AI World War I ‘Letter from the Front’ project grew out of a desire to incorporate AI in the classroom while still maintaining academic integrity and promoting speaking and listening skills,” Mr. Swenty said.
Students were expected to take responsibility for the historical accuracy of their work and carefully research the information included in their letters.
“I trained the students to focus on the questions to guide the AI generation and held students accountable for any information contained in their letters,” he explained. “Students were very interested in researching the backgrounds of the details contained in their letters and then read them aloud to the class to promote speaking and listening skills.”
The project combined Social Studies and English Language Arts standards, allowing students to deepen their historical understanding while strengthening writing, speaking and presentation skills. Student work was evaluated using a rubric that assessed historical accuracy, perspective and voice, strength of ideas, organization and clarity, and oral presentation skills. Students could also earn bonus points by incorporating historically relevant props during their presentations.
“Overall, a great project that hopefully teaches students increased responsibility and accountability when utilizing AI,” Swenty said.
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Advancing Strategic Goal 1: Student Excellence, encouraging innovative instruction that strengthens literacy, historical analysis and communication skills while preparing students to apply critical thinking and responsible technology use in meaningful ways.
