AI in education: practical AI training for K-12 teachers

For K-12 teachers, paraprofessionals, coaches and administrators: use AI to plan and differentiate, protect student data, keep assessment honest and respond to AI safety risks.

For: K-12 teachers, paraprofessionals, administrators and instructional coaches

  • 2 contact hours
  • 7 modules
  • 9 interactives
  • 4 job aids
  • Updated October 11, 2026

What you will be able to do

  • Explain what generative AI is, its strengths and limits, and how federal (EO 14277, 2025 Department of Education guidance) and state guidance shape AI use in schools.
  • Use AI appropriately for planning, differentiation, feedback and administrative tasks, checking outputs for accuracy, safety and bias, and supporting accessibility without replacing accommodations.
  • Protect student data when using AI by applying FERPA, COPPA age limits, CIPA and district vendor approval, and respond correctly if data has been exposed.
  • Guide student AI use and protect academic integrity through AI literacy, clear AI-use levels, process-based assessment and fair responses to suspected misuse.
  • Recognize AI safety risks such as deepfakes, harmful content and AI companions, act within your role and escalate, and contribute to classroom and district AI policy and family communication.

Learn what generative AI can and cannot do in a classroom, how federal and state guidance shapes its use, and how to use it well for planning, differentiation and feedback while checking every output for accuracy and bias. You will practice protecting student data under FERPA and COPPA, designing assessments that keep students' thinking visible, and responding to deepfakes, harmful content and AI companions.

Built for classroom teachers, paraprofessionals, instructional coaches and school leaders. Scenarios from real US schools cover a lab handout with hidden errors, a paraprofessional's chatbot prompt, a detector that flagged an English learner, a deepfake in a group chat and a district policy working group.

Current to Executive Order 14277 (April 2025), the Department of Education's July 2025 AI guidance, the 2025 COPPA amendments and the TAKE IT DOWN Act, the course separates what the law requires from good practice and leaves you with a staff checklist, a policy review template, a concern report form and a quick-reference card.

What you’ll be able to do Monday morning

  1. Check that every AI tool you use is district-approved for that use and age group.
  2. Remove all student names and identifying details from your AI prompts.
  3. Run the six-step review on AI materials before students see them.
  4. Label your next assignment with a clear AI-use level and add a process checkpoint.
  5. Know exactly whom to tell, and what not to do, if you see an AI-generated image of a student.
  6. Write a short classroom AI statement you can share with students and families.

Curriculum

7 modules · 28 lessons · about 2 contact hours

01What is generative AI, and what are the rules for schools?Free preview14 min
  1. What is generative AI, in plain terms?
  2. What does federal policy say about AI in schools?
  3. How does state and district guidance fit in?
  4. Where does a teacher's judgment come in?
  • Sort activity: Appropriate teacher use of AI?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

02How can teachers use AI well for planning, differentiation and feedback?14 min
  1. Where can AI help with planning and preparation?
  2. How can AI support differentiation and students with disabilities?
  3. Should I use AI to give feedback or grade?
  4. How do I check AI output for accuracy and bias?
  • Spot the issue: Find the errors in an AI-generated handout

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

03How do I protect student data when using AI?14 min
  1. Why does typing into an AI tool count as sharing?
  2. How do COPPA and age limits affect AI tools?
  3. How do districts vet AI tools?
  4. How can I use AI safely without student data?
  • Spot the issue: Spot the student data in these prompts
  • Decision tree: Can I use this AI tool for this task?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

04How should students use AI, and what about academic integrity?15 min
  1. What do students need to learn about AI?
  2. Why are AI detectors not enough?
  3. How do I design assessments for an AI world?
  4. What should I do when I suspect AI misuse?
  • Ethics dilemma: The essay that doesn't sound like him

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

05What safety risks does AI bring for students, and what is my role?15 min
  1. What are the main AI safety risks for students?
  2. What should I do about AI-generated sexual images of a student?
  3. What about harmful content, companions and other risks?
  4. How can schools reduce these risks?
  • Branching scenario: Monday morning: the image in the group chat

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

06How do we write a classroom or district AI policy?14 min
  1. What should a district AI policy cover?
  2. How do frameworks help?
  3. How do I write a classroom AI statement?
  4. How do policies stay current?
  • State rules selector: State K-12 AI guidance: examples
  • Self-assessment: How responsible is my AI practice?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

07How do I use AI fairly, accessibly and with families in the loop?13 min
  1. Where does bias show up in AI tools?
  2. How can AI support accessibility without replacing accommodations?
  3. How do we keep access fair?
  4. How should I communicate with families about AI?
  • Matching activity: Answering family questions about AI

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

Final assessment: 23 questions, 80% to pass, then your certificate

Try it now, no account needed

Monday morning: the image in the group chat

A branching scenario from this course. Your choices are not saved.

Free sample activity

Monday morning: the image in the group chat

You teach 10th-grade English. Before class, a student shows you her phone: an AI-generated explicit image of a classmate is circulating in a group chat. The classmate is in your next period.

Inside the course

Practice activities

  • Sort activity1
  • Spot the issue2
  • Decision tree1
  • Ethics dilemma1
  • Branching scenario1
  • State rules selector1
  • Self-assessment1
  • Matching activity1

Job aids you keep

  • Classroom AI Staff ChecklistChecklist
  • Classroom and District AI Policy Review TemplateTemplate
  • AI-Related Concern Report FormTemplate
  • AI in the Classroom Quick ReferencePocket card

Credit and approval status

Certificate of completion

This course awards a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours of instruction. It is not approved or accredited by any state education agency, licensing board or continuing education accreditor, and it is not a state-specific training. Check with your district or state licensing office whether it is accepted for professional development or license renewal hours.

Pathways we may pursue include review by state educator professional development approvers and IACET-aligned processes. None of these approvals exists today; the course page will show an approval only after it is granted.

Our full approvals list

State notes

States approach AI in K-12 schools very differently. Many state education agencies have published guidance documents, and some states have enacted laws requiring districts to adopt AI policies by set dates. State student privacy laws, such as California's SOPIPA, New York Education Law 2-d, Illinois's Student Online Personal Protection Act and similar laws, also govern how AI vendors may use student data. States also have their own laws on AI-generated intimate images, cyberbullying and mandated reporting.

This course is not a state edition. Check your state education agency's website for current AI guidance, ask your district whether a local AI policy has been adopted, and follow your district's approved tool list.

Questions about this course

Who is this course for?

K-12 classroom teachers, paraprofessionals, instructional coaches and school administrators who use AI or set expectations for it. It assumes no technical background. District leaders writing AI policy will find the policy module useful, and the separate leader course on FERPA covers vendor governance in more depth.

Does the course teach me to use a specific AI product?

No. It teaches decisions that apply to any AI tool: when use is allowed, how to protect student data, how to check outputs, how to guide students and how to respond to risks. Your district's approved tools and training cover product-specific features.

Is the course current with federal AI guidance?

It reflects Executive Order 14277 (April 23, 2025), the Department of Education's July 2025 guidance on AI and federal funds, the 2025 COPPA Rule amendments and the TAKE IT DOWN Act (May 2025). AI guidance changes quickly, so we review the course at least every 12 months and after major changes.

How long does it take, and what do I receive?

Plan on about two hours, including seven modules, interactive exercises, knowledge checks and a final assessment. You need 80 percent to pass. You receive a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours plus a staff checklist, a policy review template, a concern report form and a quick-reference card.

Does it count for my state's AI training requirement?

Some states and districts are introducing AI expectations for educators. This general course is not a state edition and is not approved by any state agency. Ask your district or state whether it accepts this certificate for professional development hours.

Is it approved for license renewal credit?

Not at this time. It awards a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours and is not approved or accredited by any state education agency or accreditor. Check with your state licensing office or district.

This course is general education and training awareness from CE Courses Hub on AI in K-12 education. It is not legal, medical or professional advice and does not replace your district's policies, your licensing board's rules, or advice from a qualified professional or your district's counsel. Completing it earns a certificate of completion for the stated contact hours; it is not approved or accredited by any licensing board, state agency or accreditor unless an approval is shown on the course page. Check with your board, employer or state agency whether this course meets your specific requirement.