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ISOMO | POLICY GUIDANCE | V1.0 FINAL | APPROVED

General Guidance on the Use of Artificial Intelligence

Principles and practical guidance for staff, facilitators, and learners
Approved by Isomo Leadershipv1.0 Final | 19 June 2026Review cycle: annual
CHAPTER I

Why this guidance exists

AI is a genuine opportunity to amplify Isomo's mission — and a real source of risk.
CHAPTER I

The opportunity

What AI unlocks for Isomo
  • IsomoBot — an AI learning companion
  • Ijwi — a voice AI speaking and listening coach
  • The AI Hour and AI Bootcamps — literacy and building
  • A vehicle for critical thinking, confidence, and 21st-century skills
CHAPTER I

The risks

What we have to actively manage
  • Inaccuracy — confident answers that are wrong
  • Bias — stereotyped, culturally inappropriate outputs
  • Privacy and data harms
  • Over-reliance — replacing student thinking
  • Widening — rather than closing — the digital divide
CHAPTER I
★ FRAMING

This is guidance, not a rigid rulebook.

It states principles, gives practical do's and don'ts, and points to where to seek advice.

CHAPTER I
▲ NOTE

Where this document sits

Between Isomo's AI Strategy (what we build and why) and any future binding policy (enforceable rules). Where this guidance and formal policy or the law conflict, jurisprudence and executive order prevail.

CHAPTER II

Grounding frameworks

This guidance draws on six sources — Rwandan, international, and academic.
CHAPTER II

The six frameworks

  • Rwanda's National AI Policy (MINICT, 2022) — ethical, inclusive, skills-led
  • U.S. DoD AI Ethical Principles (2020) — Responsible, Equitable, Traceable, Reliable, Governable
  • University of London AI Policy (UOL04, 2024) + Russell Group principles
  • Texas Christian University AI Policy (2026) — operational controls
  • UNESCO guidance on generative AI in education (2023) — equity-first
  • Learning-science evidence on AI tutors and language outcomes
CHAPTER II

Who this applies to

Everyone acting on behalf of Isomo
Staff & facilitators
  • Teachers
  • Program staff
  • Technical team
  • Volunteers
  • Contractors
Students & learners
  • Academy participants
  • Circles
  • AI Hour
  • AI Bootcamps
  • IsomoBot & Ijwi users
CHAPTER III

Our foundational principles

Seven principles for any use of AI at Isomo.
CHAPTER III
a
RESPONSIBLE

Human-centered and accountable

AI supports people; it does not replace human judgment. A human is always accountable. Final decisions that affect a person — a grade, a hiring decision — must be made by a person, not by an AI.
CHAPTER III
b
EQUITABLE

Fair and equitable

We take deliberate steps to minimize bias and to avoid creating or widening inequity. In Rwanda, this includes equity of access: AI must not advantage only those with devices, data, and connectivity.
CHAPTER III
c
TRACEABLE

Transparent and traceable

We are open about when and how AI is used. Where AI materially contributes to content, analysis, or a decision, that use is disclosed. Data, configuration, and reasoning must be documentable and auditable.
CHAPTER III
d
RELIABLE

Reliable and well-scoped

Each AI tool has an explicit, well-defined purpose. We test safety, accuracy, and effectiveness before relying on it — and keep testing across its life, especially for accuracy and cultural fit in the Rwandan curriculum.
CHAPTER III
e
GOVERNABLE

Controllable and supervised

Every deployed AI tool has human oversight, the ability to detect unintended behavior, and a way to disengage or shut down. We do not deploy AI we cannot monitor or stop.
CHAPTER III
f
AI-LITERATE

AI literacy is a core outcome

We invest in the skills of staff and students to understand what AI can and cannot do, evaluate its outputs critically, and use it appropriately — treating AI literacy as a core learning outcome, not an add-on.
CHAPTER III
g
PROPORTIONATE

Mindful of wider impact

We consider the social, environmental, and cost implications of AI — including the energy and money it consumes — and act proportionately, especially given the resource constraints of the communities we serve.
CHAPTER IV

Responsible-use commitments

Practical commitments that apply to everyone — staff, facilitators, and learners.
CHAPTER IV

Keep a human in the loop

Assist, don't decide
  • Use AI to draft, explain, practice, summarise, or give feedback — not to make final consequential decisions on its own.
  • The person using AI remains responsible for the result, exactly as if they had produced it unaided.
CHAPTER IV

Verify before you trust

AI hallucinates. Check.
  • AI produces confident, fluent answers that are wrong, outdated, or invented.
  • Check important information against a reliable source before using or sharing.
  • Be especially careful with Rwanda facts, curriculum, dates, names, statistics, and anything a student will be assessed on.
CHAPTER IV

Be transparent

Disclose when AI shaped your work
  • Disclose when AI has materially shaped your work (e.g., "drafted with AI assistance and then reviewed and edited").
  • Facilitators should make AI's role visible to learners.
  • Learners should acknowledge AI use as their facilitator instructs.
CHAPTER IV

Protect people's data and privacy

Off-limits for public AI tools
  • Student names linked to records
  • Health information
  • Exam data
  • Household or financial details
  • Staff HR data
  • Anything shared with Isomo in confidence
CHAPTER IV
★ RULE OF THUMB

Treat anything you would not post publicly as off-limits to a public AI tool.

Prefer Isomo-approved or contracted tools for work touching real Isomo data.

CHAPTER IV

Watch for bias and harm

  • AI reflects biases in its training data and may produce stereotyped or culturally inappropriate outputs.
  • Review outputs for fairness — especially anything that affects or describes people.
  • Never use AI to create discriminatory, harassing, deceptive, or harmful content.
CHAPTER IV

Mind the digital divide

Assume limited connectivity and devices
  • Favour low-bandwidth, offline-capable, or voice/SMS-accessible options.
  • AI should extend opportunity to the many — not concentrate it among the few.
CHAPTER IV

Stay alert to AI-enabled threats

  • AI makes phishing, fake voice/video, and scam messages more convincing.
  • Be cautious with unexpected messages.
  • Report anything suspicious to the Isomo IT/security contact.
CHAPTER V

Guidance for staff and facilitators

In addition to Section IV — for the people who build, teach with, and operate AI.
CHAPTER V

Building and deploying AI tools

For the technical team
  • Define purpose and limits before launch — what it is for, what it is not, who's accountable.
  • Ground AI in vetted, local content — prefer RAG over fine-tuning; apply guardrails either way.
  • Design for the infrastructure that exists — low bandwidth, basic devices, high data costs.
  • Build in monitoring and an off-switch — every tool needs a way to observe, catch, and disable.
  • Plan data storage and sovereignty deliberately — where it lives, who accesses, how protected.
  • Document data sources, design choices, and configuration.
CHAPTER V

Teaching and assessing with AI

  • Set clear, course-level expectations — tell learners for each activity whether and how AI may be used.
  • Teach AI literacy explicitly — how AI works, its limits, hallucination, bias, privacy, responsible use.
  • Protect genuine learning — guard against over-reliance; AI should increase practice, not replace thinking.
  • Keep oversight of AI feedback to students — spot-check accuracy and tone, especially early on.
CHAPTER V

AI for operations, admin, and proposals

  • Use AI freely for productivity with non-sensitive information — drafting, summarising, brainstorming.
  • Never paste donor-, partner-, staff-, or student-confidential data into public tools.
  • Review AI-assisted external documents (proposals, reports) for accuracy and unsupported claims.
CHAPTER VI

Guidance for students and learners

In addition to Section IV — in language for learners.
CHAPTER VI
★ THE POINT

AI is a tutor and a practice partner, not a substitute for your effort.

IsomoBot and Ijwi help you practice more, get feedback faster, and learn at your own pace. The learning still has to happen in your head.

CHAPTER VI

Six rules for learners

  • Do your own thinking first. Use AI to check, explain, or extend — not to do the work for you.
  • Follow your facilitator's instructions on when AI is allowed and how to acknowledge it.
  • Don't believe everything the AI says. It can sound sure and still be wrong.
  • Protect privacy — don't share your full name, home details, ID numbers, or classmates' info with public AI.
  • Be respectful — never use AI to bully, deceive, cheat, or create harmful content.
  • Ask questions openly — you won't be penalized for asking. You're expected to learn this.
CHAPTER VII

Choosing and approving AI tools

Which tools may touch which data, and how we approve new ones.
CHAPTER VII

Two tiers of tools

Isomo-approved
  • Reviewed for data protection
  • No-training-on-our-data terms
  • Fit-for-purpose
  • May handle real Isomo data
Public AI tools
  • No Isomo contract
  • General productivity only
  • Non-sensitive work
  • Never confidential or personal data
CHAPTER VII

Before adopting a new tool

  • Check it against this guidance — even free tools, even new AI features on tools we already use.
  • Raise it with the team AI lead for review.
  • Opt out of letting the tool train on your inputs when you can.
CHAPTER VII
▲ NOTE

Interim arrangement

Until an AI lead is nominated, tool review requests and approval questions should be routed to Isomo IT so that no decision is blocked while the role is being filled.

CHAPTER VIII

When to seek advice, and how we govern this

When to check first, and what our oversight looks like.
CHAPTER VIII

Seek advice before you:

  • Adopt, buy, or build a new AI tool or service
  • Use AI with personal data, or confidential Isomo/partner/donor information
  • Introduce a material change to how AI is used in teaching or assessment
  • Use AI in research, or anything that may be published externally
CHAPTER VIII

Oversight function

To be confirmed by Isomo leadership
  • A designated AI lead plus a lightweight review group.
  • Responsible for: maintaining this guidance, approving tools, monitoring outcomes, reporting to leadership.
  • Draws on teaching, technical, and leadership perspectives.
  • Reviews the guidance at least annually.
CHAPTER VIII

Nominating the AI lead

  • Nominated by the Isomo team within 60 days of this guidance being approved.
  • Initial one-year term, reviewable annually.
  • Open to any staff member or facilitator with demonstrated engagement in Isomo's AI work.
  • The team will agree the nomination process before opening it.
CHAPTER VIII
★ IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG

Stop, and report it promptly to the AI Lead.

Personal data entered into the wrong tool. Harmful output. A tool misbehaving. So it can be contained and learned from.

CHAPTER IX

How we'll know it's working

Four questions we'll review our use of AI against.
CHAPTER IX

Four review questions

  • Learning — Are AI tools measurably improving English proficiency, confidence, and digital/AI literacy?
  • Equity — Are the tools reaching learners with limited devices and connectivity, or only those already connected?
  • Quality & safety — Rates of inaccurate or inappropriate outputs caught; incidents and how they were handled.
  • Responsible use — Are disclosure, human-oversight, and data-protection commitments being followed?
CHAPTER IX
▲ NOTE

Open questions to resolve as we pilot

How exactly to define and assess AI literacy | whether to run AI-free vs AI-allowed terms | the right metrics for each.

CHAPTER A

Alignment with Rwanda's National AI Policy

This guidance operates within — and contributes to — MINICT (2022).
CHAPTER A

Priority Area 1

21st Century Skills & High AI Literacy
  • Activity 12 — AI/ML/data modules for the national curriculum. AI Hour + Bootcamps designed for compatibility.
  • Activity 13 — Train-the-Trainer in AI skills. Isomo's facilitator training contributes directly.
  • Activity 14 — align primary/secondary with 21st-century curriculum. Academy + Circles embed AI literacy.
  • Activity 21 — public awareness on AI (benefits + risks). AI Hour, Bootcamps, public comms extend literacy.
CHAPTER A

Priority Area 6

Practical AI Ethics Guidelines
  • Activity 67 — align with Rwanda's ethics guidelines as RURA/MINICT publishes them. National guidelines prevail if they conflict.
  • Activity 71 — annual participatory industry & society consultation. Isomo will participate and feed back lessons.

Guidance evolves.

Reviewed annually. Or sooner as AI tools and Isomo's programs evolve.
V1.0 FINAL | APPROVED BY ISOMO LEADERSHIP | 19 JUNE 2026

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