Beijing Releases 2026 AI in Education Guide, Setting Age-Based Red Lines for Student AI Use

Beijing recently released the 2026 edition of its Guide for the Application of Artificial Intelligence in Education, setting red lines for student AI use by age group. The guide states that infants aged 0 to 3 are not advised to directly contact AI tools, toys or AI-generated content; children aged 3 to 6 may have limited experiences accompanied by parents; primary school students are not advised to use AI tools alone; middle school students may explore under teacher or parent accompaniment; and high school students may conduct inquiry-based learning with teacher permission. The guide establishes three lists—prohibited, limited use and encouraged use—and requires schools to set their own AI guidelines and teachers to state in advance the permitted scope of AI use in assignments.

The guide turns the previously discussion-level question of whether primary and secondary students should use AI into executable stage-based boundaries and three lists, directly changing the basis for management by schools, teachers and parents in homework, classroom and family settings. For AI education product providers, features for minors, age access and anthropomorphic companion applications will face clearer compliance constraints; for schools and teachers, AI use rules need to be written into school-based systems and implemented in daily assignment statements. The guide is a local document, and actual enforcement and school-level implementation differences still need to be observed. Schools need to formulate or adjust their own AI application guidelines and management systems, clarify scenarios and boundaries for student AI use, and restrict AI use in papers and assignments. AI education products for minors need to reassess compliance regarding age access, anthropomorphic emotional companion features and homework assistance positioning against the three lists.