Illinois board of education releases guidelines for artificial intelligence use in schools
Illinois board of education releases guidelines for artificial intelligence use in schools
Publish Date: 2026-07-11 13:52:00
Source Domain: whig.com
Illinois board of education releases guidelines for artificial intelligence use in schools
Published 12:52 pm Saturday, July 11, 2026
SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois State Board of Education released comprehensive guidelines Thursday to help local school districts navigate the implementation of artificial intelligence across elementary and secondary classrooms.
The state regulatory framework was developed to fulfill a legislative mandate under Public Act 104 0399. The resulting guidance creates a flexible operational roadmap for local administrators rather than establishing rigid statewide mandates or top-down classroom requirements. State policy experts, technology advisors, and public educators collaborated to form the recommendations, keeping human instruction and student data privacy at the center of the initiative.
State Superintendent of Education Dr. Tony Sanders emphasized that the state agency views the technology as an instructional supplement rather than an automated alternative to classroom teachers.
“This guidance makes clear that AI is a tool to support teaching and learning, not a replacement for the relationships that ground teaching and learning,” Sanders said. “Our responsibility is to help schools navigate new technologies in a way that strengthens instruction, protects students, and builds trust for informed AI use between districts and the families and communities they serve.”
The regulatory framework rests on four cornerstone tenets: prioritizing human relationships in education, honoring the academic and civic purposes of public schools, treating artificial intelligence as a supportive teaching mechanism rather than an end goal, and maintaining local board oversight.
The publication provides actionable resources, sample templates, and case studies to assist regional administrators. The documents cover…
