New York teachers union backs screen and AI limits for young students
New York teachers union backs screen and AI limits for young students
Publish Date: 2026-06-01 17:43:00
Source Domain: www.chalkbeat.org
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The tide is quickly turning against screens and artificial intelligence in schools — at least in New York state.
The state’s teachers union is the latest to join the grassroots parent efforts to limit screens and AI, passing a resolution this weekend calling for a ban on individual students’ screen use in prekindergarten through second grade, including online assessments.
It also calls for banning student-facing AI for these young learners, as well as prohibiting AI chatbots for students under 16.
Gov. Kathy Hochul also expressed concerns on Monday about screen time in schools.
The resolution from New York State United Teachers, or NYSUT, which is the umbrella union of New York City’s United Federation of Teachers, comes on the heels of a push for a nationwide strategy to curb technology use in schools from its parent union, the American Federation of Teachers. AFT President Randi Weingarten last week called for similar limits in her “devices-down, eyes-up, hands-on” plan.
The resolution from the state teachers union comes as New York City is rethinking its policies on artificial intelligence in schools. Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels recently called AI the “most invasive technology that we’ve seen” and signaled the Education Department may create clearer guardrails for the city’s youngest students, after significant criticism of the city’s initial draft policy.
“Educators are not anti-technology. We are pro-child,” NYSUT President Melinda Person said in a statement on Monday. “Every decision made in the name of innovation must actually serve the students in our classrooms.”
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