THE CRUNCH
The United Arab Emirates has become the first country to make artificial intelligence a required subject across all school years, from kindergarten to the end of secondary school. The approach treats AI as a form of literacy rather than technical training: schools teach children how the technology works, where it goes wrong and when humans should step in, rather than handing them unrestricted access.
Younger pupils are not expected to use generative AI on their own. At Dubai Schools Al Khawaneej, children in grades one to three learn through discussion, stories and role-play, with teachers showing examples of AI mistakes for pupils to spot, or pretending to be a robot so children must give ever more precise instructions. Elementary principal James Efford said the school does not allow public ChatGPT accounts and does not build its programme around any particular AI model or hardware platform.
Schools monitor apps and use firewalls, and older students get restricted access to approved tools such as Padlet, Canva and Mathletics. The government plans to train 22,000 teachers to use AI for teaching, assessment, curriculum analysis and lesson planning, while Dubai's Knowledge and Human Development Authority is developing a wider policy framework and a 10-year roadmap for personalised learning.
The mandate puts the UAE on one side of a growing global debate. While the UAE and China treat early AI literacy as a national priority, New York City has imposed a one-year moratorium on student-facing generative AI in public schools up to grade eight over mental health concerns, and Norway has enacted a similar near-ban for primary school children.
AI is also being used to make classrooms more accessible, with schools simplifying texts for struggling readers, translating material for pupils learning English and creating word banks, according to Jayda Keer, an inclusion consultant and former head of inclusion at Dubai International Academy.