To 'Bot' or Not to 'Bot'...That is the Question for Schools
When was the last time you gave serious thought to chatbots on your school’s website, portals or intranet? If you’re like most school leaders, marketers, or communications coordinators, the answer is probably never. Chatbots—those little pop-up boxes that ask if you need help while you’re browsing a website—seem to be a feature better suited for e-commerce sites or customer service platforms, not your school’s homepage or portals.
But here’s the thing: the landscape is changing. With the rise of powerful technologies like Large Language Models (think ChatGPT), chatbots are no longer the clunky, frustrating tools they once were. They’re smarter, more adaptable, and—dare we say—almost ready to become a must-have on every school website.
So why aren’t schools jumping on the chatbot bandwagon? And, more importantly, why should they?
What’s Holding Schools Back from Embracing Chatbots?
It’s not that school leaders and comms teams are against the idea of improving school websites—they’re just wary. There are some common misconceptions and knowledge gaps that have kept chatbots on the backburner. Let’s bust a few of them wide open:
1. "Chatbots are just for product sales"
Many people think of chatbots as sales tools designed to push products or services. They’ve interacted with these bots on retail websites, trying to get help buying a new pair of shoes or a TV. So, it's easy to assume that chatbots won’t work for schools, which aren’t selling anything but education. But the reality is, chatbots can be customized to help with a wide range of tasks: answering FAQs, directing visitors to important information, managing event registrations, or even taking tour bookings. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination.
2. "The chatbot responses were terrible"
It’s true: many schools have tried chatbots before and were disappointed by their poor responses. The problem? A lot of “drop-in” chatbot solutions simply point to your website’s data without really understanding the context or nuances of the educational environment and the different audiences - prospective families and staff versus current families and staff. This leads to frustrating, irrelevant, or even confusing answers. But today’s chatbot solutions such as SklChat, powered by generative AI, are pre trained specifically for schools, using school data to provide relevant and accurate answers to typical school queries and requests (e.g. "When are the holidays", "John is sick today", "what is the name of the year 10 co-ordinator?", "What opportunities are there for staff development", "What is on the canteen menu?"...)
3. "Chatbots can only search the entire internet, not our school’s data"
Another myth is that chatbots can only pull information from the entire internet, making them less reliable when it comes to specific, localized information. Actually, modern chatbots can be trained to search your school’s own websites, database, calendar, FAQ list, and more. This means your chatbot can provide highly targeted and accurate responses based on the exact needs of your school community.
4. "AI chatbots make things up"
Generative AI—like the technology behind ChatGPT—can sound a little too good to be true. And while it’s true that early versions of AI models sometimes “hallucinate” (i.e., make things up), today’s chatbot technologies are much more reliable. By fine-tuning the AI with controlled settings—like limiting its access to only accurate, verified data—you can reduce the chances of generating inaccurate or fabricated content.
5. "Setting up a chatbot is too time-consuming and requires expertise"
The idea of setting up a chatbot can feel overwhelming. After all, it sounds like you need an expert to train the bot and maintain it. But with advancements in chatbot platforms, this is no longer the case. Many tools are intuitive and easy to use and, pre trained to understand school enquiries and simple to add to exisiting websties, portals and intranets using a line of code. Once the bot is up and running, it can be self-sustaining, automatically updating with changes to the website, FAQs and calender dates.
6. "Chatbots don’t have the personal touch"
Let’s face it: schools are all about relationships. A chatbot might feel impersonal compared to speaking with a real person. But here’s the thing: modern chatbots don’t replace human connection—they enhance it. They can take care of the repetitive, low-level inquiries (e.g., “What time does the school day start?” or “When is the next parent-teacher conference?”) so that your staff can focus on what really matters—driving educational outcomes.
7. "We’re afraid of AI taking over schools"
The rise of AI is a hot topic, and it’s understandable that there may be some concern about its place in schools. But adding a chatbot to your website/portals isn’t about handing over control to a robot. It’s about making everyday tasks easier, more efficient, and more accessible for your students, parents, and staff. Plus, with the ability to customize the bot’s data sets and ensure it responds accurately, you remain firmly in control.
8. "The tech is changing too quickly for us to keep up"
The pace of technological advancement can feel dizzying, especially in schools, where resources are often stretched thin. But here’s the good news: adopting a chatbot is a low-risk entry point into the world of AI. By starting with a simple chatbot on your school’s website or portal, you can dip your toes into the AI waters without overhauling your entire tech infrastructure.
9. "Schools worry that any interactions with a chatbot will be training a LLM"
This is a common concern, but it’s not true. If schools use a dedicated school chatbot service (like SklChat), no data is used to train large language models (LLMs). The only data stored is conversation data, which is used by the school to monitor conversations and capture insights. This data is stored for a short period, then deleted and is always de-personalized to protect privacy.
10. "Chatbots are not secure enough for handling sensitive information"
Some schools may be hesitant to implement chatbots because they’re concerned about security and privacy, especially when handling student data. However, many chatbot platforms are designed with robust security measures in place, including end-to-end encryption, data anonymization, and compliance with privacy regulations like GDPR or FERPA. With the right chatbot service, schools can feel confident that their data is secure.
Why Schools Should Consider Adding a Chatbot
Still not convinced? Let’s talk about the real benefits of adding a chatbot to your school website:
- A simple, low-cost-effective way to experiment with AI: It’s a low-risk first step towards more widespread AI adoption across your school’s ecosystem.
- A personalized experience for school families: Chatbots can be trained to respond to specific questions from parents, students, and staff—about events, deadlines, school policies, and more—helping people find the information they need quickly and easily.
- Multilingual capabilities: With many school communities becoming more diverse, a chatbot can be trained to respond in multiple languages, ensuring accessibility for all.
- Increased engagement: Chatbots can handle tasks like event sign-ups, feedback collection, and even promoting school activities, driving more engagement and participation.
- Enhance school navigation: A chatbot can complement your website’s search and navigation tools, making it easier for users to find information. Think of it as a digital assistant that’s available 24/7.
- Automatic content and communications audit: When a chatbot is set up to point to school data—such as website content—and standard school-related questions are used to test the bot, it becomes easy to identify any gaps in information. This allows schools to proactively detect missing or outdated content, ensuring that the website and communication materials are always accurate and comprehensive.
- Improved information quality: Once any content gaps are identified, schools can quickly update their website or FAQs to fill in those blanks, improving the quality and completeness of the information provided to families and staff.
- Easy access to key dates from multiple calendars: Searching for important school dates can be a time-consuming task, especially when they’re spread across multiple locations—sports calendars on spreadsheets, term dates on the website, excursion dates in the portal, etc. A chatbot can be configured to pull from one or more calendars, providing instant answers when parents, students, or staff need them, saving time and reducing frustration.
The Stats Speak for Themselves
The world is increasingly leaning toward chat. A recent study showed that 75% of people prefer using chat over other forms of communication—whether that’s searching a website or calling a customer service line. And that’s not just a passing trend. Digital natives—the next generation of parents, students, and teachers—are becoming less comfortable with traditional communication methods. They want to chat, not wait on hold or sift through FAQs
In fact, 70% of millennials and Gen Z say they would rather message a company or school than speak to someone on the phone.
Time to Rethink Your Chatbot Strategy
The days of clunky, frustrating chatbots are over. Today’s chatbots—powered by advanced AI—are smarter, more flexible, and more reliable than ever. Schools that are willing to embrace this technology can offer better, faster support to their community, while also saving time and resources.
So, the next time you ask yourself, “To bot or not to bot?” remember: the future is here, and it’s waiting to chat.
Feel free to get in touch to discuss SklChat or anything else related: nicole@sklchat.com