No AI until high school: NYC schools announce major classroom technology overhaul
Students in the nation’s largest school district return to classrooms next week.
ByPhil Taitt
Wednesday, September 2, 2026 8:27AM
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NEW YORK CITY (WABC) –Nearly 600,000 New York City public school students will be barred from using artificial intelligence in the classroom and face strict new limits on screen time under a sweeping technology policy Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels are expected to unveil Wednesday.
The policy, believed to be the most restrictive of its kind in the nation, would prohibit generative AI tools, including chatbots, AI tutors and instructional programs, for all students through eighth grade. Only high school students would be permitted to use AI, and even then under what officials describe as “restricted” access rules.
City officials are also moving to sharply reduce the use of individual learning devices for younger students. Children in preschool through second grade would not have access to personal learning devices in class. Students in grades 3 through 5 would be limited to 30 minutes of daily screen time on individual devices, while middle school students could use them for no more than 45 minutes per day.
The announcement marks a dramatic shift in the nation’s largest school system just days before the Sept. 10 start of the new school year.
Teachers will continue to be allowed to use approved AI tools for administrative and instructional support, including lesson planning, translating materials and drafting communications. However, the technology will be prohibited for grading student work, monitoring behavior, counseling students in crisis and developing special education plans.
School leaders have been awaiting the guidance for months. Principals were instructed in July to pause software purchases while the administration finalized its policy. Earlier guidance released in March did not include grade-based AI restrictions or limits on digital devices.
The crackdown comes amid growing concerns from parents, educators and lawmakers about the impact of artificial intelligence and screen-based learning on children. Parent advocacy groups have pushed for an AI moratorium in schools, while more than half of the City Council signed a letter urging City Hall and the Department of Education to halt expanded AI use in classrooms.
Supporters of the restrictions argue that many AI-powered educational programs offer questionable academic value and can encourage students to rely on technology rather than critical thinking. Some instructional apps have been criticized for resembling video games and making it easier for students to circumvent traditional learning.
The concerns mirror those that fueled New York City’s bell-to-bell cellphone ban, which took effect at the start of the last school year as educators and parents sought to reduce distractions and improve student engagement.
“The tech industry wants us to believe that A.I.-powered early education is not only inevitable, but necessary. We do not see it that way,” Mamdani said in a statement ahead of the announcement.
The mayor and schools chancellor are scheduled to formally unveil the policy at 10:30 a.m. at the Brooklyn STEAM Center in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. News 12’s Phil Taitt will report live from the event.
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