The use of artificial intelligence continues to increase rapidly, but unevenly, across schools.
States and school districts have different policies governing AI use. In some cases, state policies simply say that districts must have their own guidelines at the local level that govern data privacy and other needs. In other cases, the state requirements are more prescriptive or mandate the creation of new academic standards that include AI.
Additionally, individual teachers鈥� and students鈥� modes of experimentation with the tech can vary from classroom to classroom. Some 糖心动漫vlog have immersed themselves in general-use AI platforms, such as ChatGPT or Claude鈥攚hich typically have age restrictions for the safety of the student鈥攚hile others are relying on AI tools and platforms designed specifically for schools.
The EdWeek Research Center鈥檚 recent surveys of administrators and teachers speak to the hodgepodge AI landscape and student experiences with the technology.
Seventy-three percent of 糖心动漫vlog say their district does not have a districtwide initiative focused on artificial intelligence. Just 27% say they do, according to an EdWeek Research Center survey conducted of 140 district leaders, 89 school leaders, and 464 teachers between September and November 2025.
In a separate survey conducted in June through July of 2025 of 264 teachers, 61% said they use AI-driven tools in the classroom, 8% said they have not used AI but plan to start in the future, and 8% planned to start that school year.
Twenty-one percent said they have never used them and do not plan to start. Two percent said they used to use AI but stopped.
Victor Lee, an associate professor in the graduate school of education at Stanford University, said given the lack of guidance from policymakers and the perceived risks of using AI, some classroom 糖心动漫vlog鈥� wariness of bringing the tech to students is understandable.
鈥淭here鈥檚 still hesitation amongst teachers with using AI at a velocity, especially now with a larger tech backlash [happening in schools],鈥� said Lee.
Why some students use general-purpose AI over ed-tech tools
Many school districts lack policies guiding which specific types of AI technologies students and teachers can use. As a result, 糖心动漫vlog and students are using general-purpose AI tools such as Claude and ChatGPT over AI tech designed specifically for use in classrooms, said Matt Alonzo, a math and computer science teacher at Parkway North High School in St. Louis.
But general-purpose AI tools often come with age restrictions鈥攕trongly supported by many advocates and parents鈥攖hat can limit students鈥� ability to use them, or prevent them from taking them up at all, Alonzo noted.
Without offering clear direction to teachers and students on what tools are allowed or off limits, schools are 鈥渞eally creating a barrier for students who don鈥檛 have access to use AI in the way that we would like our students to be using it,鈥� said Alonzo.
Without 鈥渁 policy, a focused AI integration process,鈥� said Michael Martin, principal of Buckeye Central High School in Ohio, teachers will be using AI 鈥渋n different ways and all at different levels of understanding,鈥� which will cause a problem.
Martin鈥檚 school uses school-specific AI tools like MagicSchoolAI and Gemini, he told Education Week. Martin is aware that teachers take up AI tools outside of the school-endorsed platforms, but those are mainly used to aid 糖心动漫vlog in aspects of their work that aren鈥檛 directly tied to students.
For example, some teachers use ChatGPT or Claude to come up with ideas for classroom activities, and Martin has tapped Perplexity for research to support his role as a principal.
Valentine Torres, the business department chair and business dual- credit instructor at Hobart High School in Indiana, told Education Week that her students had previously been using HeyPi.com, a brainstorming AI-powered tool, but this school year, HeyPi.com put in place an age restriction.
Her school is piloting an AI policy, but it won鈥檛 be implemented until next school year. The policy describes the degree to which students should be allowed to use AI, with different levels based on how appropriate it is. Those standards extend from level zero, which calls for students to work independently of the technology and not use AI at all for assignments, to level four, which says students can use AI as a partner for a project.
Age restrictions on AI are, in many respects, a positive development, Torres said. They can push teachers to 鈥渕ake sure that they dig a little deeper into [a] tool before they introduce it to a high school student,鈥� said Torres.
Ways schools can make AI more equitable
Concerns about uneven access to technology, of course, go back decades.
Torres recalls that she grew up during a time when there were clear divides between those who learned to use the internet as an academic resource and those who didn鈥檛 because it wasn鈥檛 something they were taught.
She wants to do her part to make sure she鈥檚 not allowing a new form of tech inequity to take hold. 鈥淚鈥檓 going to teach kids how to use these tech tools [like AI],鈥� said Torres. What she doesn鈥檛 want is that 鈥�30 years from now, half of them are going to be behind on technology.鈥�
Lee sees parallels between discussions schools and policymakers are having about equitable AI access to those that played out about high-speed internet or mobile devices during the COVID-19 pandemic.
We think about AI as an 鈥渁ccess point for everybody, but we also want to make sure that it鈥檚 done safely, responsibly,鈥� he said.
In an effort to create an equitable learning environment, Torres doesn鈥檛 assign homework that requires students to use AI-driven technology outside of school.
Torres shares her class syllabus with parents and tells them which digital tools, including those that rely on AI, are being used for different lessons. That communication helps parents understand the intersection between the tech students are using at home and at school.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important to be transparent with parents,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen we鈥檙e transparent, we typically won鈥檛 get [a parent that doesn鈥檛 want their kid to use the tool].鈥�
Martin says the most important questions about students鈥� interactions with AI center on whether they鈥檙e being encouraged to use it in academically rich ways.
鈥淓very kid has access to [AI, but] do they have access to really high-quality AI literacy, high-quality instruction?鈥� said Martin.
Lee advises 糖心动漫vlog to consider what they are trying to accomplish through AI鈥攁s they would any digital tool鈥攁nd build guidance and specific lessons from there.
鈥淲hat we want to think about is purposeful instructional use of any particular technology,鈥� he said, and evidence that the teacher鈥檚 strategy for using it is 鈥渁ctually a good way to do it.鈥�
