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Releases National Framework on Artificial Intelligence in Educator Preparation

August 20, 2026
Press Releases & Statements

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Aug. 20, 2026 – Washington, D.C.) today released the , a national resource to help educator preparation programs (EPPs) navigate the rapidly changing role of artificial intelligence in education.

The framework, developed through collaboration among members of the Programmatic Advisory Committee on Innovation and Technology, leadership, Board of Directors, and external reviewers, reflects a shared commitment to ensuring that AI strengthens educator preparation while keeping human relationships and professional expertise at the center.

“Artificial intelligence presents both tremendous opportunity and significant responsibility for educator preparation,” said Cheryl Holcomb-McCoy, Ph.D., President and CEO. “’s Framework reflects our commitment to ensuring that technology serves, not supplants, the expertise, ethics, and professional judgment of educators.”

The widespread adoption of AI is changing what educators need to know and what they need to be able to do. EPPs have a critical role in ensuring that future educators can evaluate AI-generated information, recognize bias and limitations, protect student privacy, promote equitable access, and make sound decisions about how AI fits into teaching and learning.

The framework centers this work on four interconnected areas:

  • Ethical and Policy Guardrails: AI literacy, privacy, equity, accessibility, and responsible governance.
  • Clinical Practice and Implementation: Evaluating AI systems and integrating them thoughtfully into teaching and learning.
  • Cognitive Architecture and Advocacy: Understanding metacognition, cognitive load, algorithmic bias, and how AI can support rather than diminish human thinking.
  • Professional Expertise and Human Judgment: Ensuring educators remain responsible for instructional decisions, student relationships, ethical reasoning, and culturally responsive practice.

Together, these areas position AI literacy as a matter of professional practice, not simply technology training.

This new framework marks the beginning of ’s continued work on AI and educator preparation as technologies and their applications in education continue to evolve, and is available as a resource for EPPs seeking to prepare future educators for an AI-enabled profession.

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Established in 1948, is the leading voice in educator preparation. ’s member institutions and programs prepare the greatest number of professional educators in the United States and its territories, including teachers, counselors, administrators, and college faculty. These professional educators are prepared for careers in PK-12 classrooms, colleges and universities, state and governmental agencies, policy institutes, and non-profit organizations. Learn more at .