Children using AI in schools: How 3 major countries differ in policy amid debate on tech’s brain effects
On June 19, Norway’s prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre announced a near ban on the use of generative AI by elementary school students. The government’s new guidelines, which will be applied for the upcoming school year starting in August, lay out how much AI students should be using given their age and grade level: Students in first through seventh grade (approximately ages 6–13) will be barred from using the technology at school, while students in lower secondary education (ages 14–16) can use the tools with careful teacher supervision. In upper secondary education (ages 17–19), students will learn how to use AI appropriately as they prepare to enter the workforce. “The most important thing in school is that our children learn to read, write and do mathematics,” Støre said at a press conference, adding that “uncritical use of AI causes students to skip important learning steps.” Støre’s concerns aren’t unfounded. A recent study by the Brookings Institution’s Center for Universal Education combined focus groups, interviews, and expert opinions to assess the impact of generative AI usage on children, concluding that risks outweigh the benefits. When children turn to AI instead of honing their own thinking skills, the study found, they stunt their own cognitive growth and problem-solving abilities. Meanwhile, study after study shows the negative impact that even short-term AI use can have on cognitive function among adults, let alone when the same principles are applied to children. In addition to banning most AI usage in schools, the Norwegian government also announced plans to increase funding for physical books in classrooms, pushing back on a yearslong trend of embracing digital learning tools. Different approaches around the world While Norway exercises caution around AI in education, other nations are speeding in the opposite direction. Just last week, Poland announced its plans to equip 12,000 primary and secondary schools with so-c