It took several decades for students’ individual computer access to become the norm in American schools. But it’s taken only about three years for the share of students using artificial intelligence in school assignments to go from zero to 84%.
At the same time, according to a 2025 report by the College Board, only 13% of schools encouraged using such generative AI in all their classes, while 1 in 5 had no policies governing its use. Educators are racing to keep pace with and use AI in ways that safeguard students’ educational interests and support vibrant classroom relationships. There is concern about repeating what some see as the “mistakes” of having allowed students unlimited access to phones and social media.
But blanket restrictions on AI in schools could be counterproductive, given that it infuses almost every aspect of daily commerce and communication – and is also shaping emerging career paths. Instead, some educators and researchers urge an approach that strengthens individual discernment and ethical decision-making – through broader “AI literacy.”
The focus should be on “how to build agency over the tech, not just agility with what it offers,” wrote Substack author Jenny Anderson and Brookings Institution analyst Rebecca Winthrop in The Washington Post this week. More than “prompt engineering,” children “need a holistic understanding” of how AI works, they wrote. Equipped with this, “they develop the capacity to know when AI supercharges their learning and when it stunts it.”
That point was underscored in a 2025 study comparing AI literacy and usage rates, which found that students with lower AI literacy were more likely to use the tools to complete their assignments than students with higher AI literacy and awareness.
Incorporating discussion of ethics, values, and accountability alongside technical concepts further bolsters AI literacy and critical thinking skills, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, a Paris-based multilateral agency. It helps ensure that “students know how to evaluate, question, and apply AI responsibly” in school and “beyond the classroom.”
Young people who understand how AI and its algorithms work are more likely to use it responsibly. Their understanding, in turn, can support the effective use of AI tools as a complement to the essential classroom interactions that enhance the education experience.
