AI for Social Good

China's AI Education Rules for Schools: 2025 Guides, 2026 Plan

China's two 2025 school guides set AI lessons by level and limit generative AI use; an April 2026 plan sets a 2030 goal. No outcome data found.

Last verified: October 20266 min read

China's Ministry of Education issued two guides for primary and secondary schools in May 2025: one lays out graded AI instruction from the first school years through senior high, and the other limits how students and teachers may use generative AI. Primary students may not use open-ended content generators on their own, and teachers may not hand grading or student questions to AI. In April 2026 the ministry added an "AI Plus Education" plan that aims for an AI education system at every level of schooling by 2030. Beijing meanwhile requires at least eight class hours of AI education per school year in its more than 1,400 primary and secondary schools, according to China Daily in September 2025.

Key takeaways

  • The two 2025 guides were issued by the Ministry of Education's committee on basic education teaching guidance on May 12, 2025, and cover general AI education and generative AI use.
  • The general guide is a spiral design: interest and basic understanding in primary school, technical principles in junior high, systems thinking and innovation in senior high.
  • The generative AI guide bars independent use of open-ended content generation by primary students and keeps AI in a supporting role for teachers.
  • An April 10, 2026 plan targets a full AI education system by 2030. Beijing's eight class hours per school year remain a city rule, not a national hour count.
  • No published evaluation of learning outcomes was found, so the policy describes intent and structure, not results.

What the May 2025 guides contain

The two documents are titled Guidelines for AI General Education in Primary and Secondary Schools and Guide to Using Generative Artificial Intelligence in Primary and Secondary Schools (both 2025 editions). Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology published an English translation of the second one in October 2025 and records the original release date as May 12, 2025. Its opening principles say technology should serve as a tool while training stays the foundation, that schools should respect student differences, and that the boundaries for using generative AI should be set by students' cognitive level at each educational stage.

The general guide organizes content as a spiral that returns to AI at each stage with more depth. Reports of the release in China Daily and a People's Daily item carried by the Henan provincial government describe primary school as a stage for sparking curiosity through hands-on activity, junior high as the stage for AI logic and problem-solving, and senior high as the stage for applying AI to design and refine models with a systems view.

Rules on generative AI, by who is using it

The restrictions sit in the generative AI guide. The table summarizes what the official release and press coverage report. Exact wording is in the Chinese text and the CSET translation.

UserReported rule
Primary studentsNo independent use of open-ended content generation tools, because such tools could complete assignments for them
Junior high studentsMay use generative AI to explore logic and analysis
Senior high studentsMay use it for inquiry-based learning and technical study
TeachersAI supports but does not replace core teaching; no reliance on AI to answer student questions; no AI-generated content to evaluate students; no personal data or exam questions entered into AI tools

The limits on teachers stand out to readers used to North American debates. School guidance in the United States and Canada mostly addresses what students may do and leaves grading tools to local policy, while the Chinese guide names grading and answering student questions as uses to avoid.

The April 2026 AI Plus Education plan

On April 10, 2026, the Ministry of Education announced a plan called AI Plus Education, reported by Xinhua on the Chinese government's English portal. Its stated goal is a full AI education system covering every level of schooling, and reaching the wider public, by 2030. For primary and secondary schools the plan speeds up AI education by adding dedicated AI courses and weaving AI into other subjects and after-school activities. For teachers it expands AI tools for homework management, grading, question answering, and tutoring, and it puts AI into teacher qualification exams and certification.

The reported text sets no numeric targets before 2030. Caixin dates the document April 8, while Xinhua reports the ministry briefing on April 10, so the briefing date is used here. The plan builds on the 2025 guides without replacing them, though one point may rub: the plan lists AI-assisted grading among teacher tools, while the 2025 generative AI guide, as reported, tells teachers not to use AI-generated content to evaluate students. The sources reviewed do not say how the two fit together.

Beijing as the early implementer

China Daily reported on September 5, 2025, that AI is now part of the general curriculum in all of Beijing's more than 1,400 primary and secondary schools, which enroll about 1.83 million students. Each school must provide at least eight class hours of AI education per academic year, either as standalone courses or inside subjects such as information technology and science.

Some popular articles describe the policy as a nationwide compulsory course starting at age six. The sources reviewed support something narrower: national guides and a 2026 plan that define content and limits, plus a municipal hour requirement in Beijing. How other provinces apply them was not found.

What is not known

The reporting describes structure, not outcomes. A search of English-language official and press sources, repeated in October 2026, turned up no evaluation of learning gains, textbook quality, teacher training coverage, or differences between city and rural schools. A policy can be well designed on paper and uneven in practice, and the Beijing hour requirement says nothing about what is taught in those hours.

Questions for comparing any national or local AI-education policy

  • Is AI treated as a subject students study, a tool they use, or both?
  • Are age limits set for independent use of generative tools?
  • Are teachers restricted from using AI for grading or for handling student data?
  • Is a minimum time set, and who checks that it is delivered?
  • Is any outcome measured and published?

This article reports government policy from public sources. It does not rate the Chinese approach against others and it does not recommend a program or provider.

FAQ

Is AI education compulsory across China?

The May 2025 guides and the April 2026 plan set national content, usage rules, and goals, but the only verified hour requirement found is Beijing's: at least eight class hours per school year in each school. A nationwide mandatory course was not confirmed.

Can Chinese primary students use ChatGPT-style tools?

Not independently. The generative AI guide prohibits primary students from using open-ended content generation tools on their own, while the general guide has them learn about AI through activities.

What may teachers do with generative AI under the guide?

Reports say teachers may use it to prepare lessons and support teaching and research, but not to replace their core role, answer student questions, evaluate students, or process sensitive data.

What changed in 2026?

The ministry announced the AI Plus Education plan on April 10, 2026. It sets a 2030 goal for AI education at all levels and adds AI to teacher qualification exams.

Is there evidence that the policy improves learning?

None was found. The sources describe the rules and the Beijing rollout, not measured results.

More in AI in education.

Last verified: October 2026

Sources

New to artificial intelligence?

Start with the basics, then follow the guides to tools, rules, and effects on society.

Start with AI Basics