CALIFORNIA (Web Desk): Technology company Google has decided to introduce a new policy governing access to artificial intelligence and search services for students studying in schools.
According to the British news agency, the new policy will apply to school-managed accounts of students from grades one to 12. Initially, Google’s AI tools, including Gemini and NotebookLM, as well as Google Search, will remain disabled. However, school administrations will be able to activate these services according to their requirements.
The decision comes amid the growing use of artificial intelligence in educational institutions and criticism surrounding its impact. Under the new policy, schools will have the authority to restore access to AI tools for students or keep it restricted.
These changes are expected to be implemented in early 2027. According to the policy, Google Search will also remain unavailable at schools that do not enable AI services for their students.
The decision has sparked debate in educational circles over whether students should have access to traditional search engines to find information, evaluate different sources and improve their research skills, while schools should retain the authority to restrict AI use separately.
Experts believe that artificial intelligence designed for educational purposes should strengthen students’ independent thinking, questioning and critical-thinking abilities rather than replace them with machine-generated answers. They also say that information about students’ academic activities could be useful for teachers, but protecting students’ personal information and data will remain essential.