AI Literacy as a Core Competency for K-12 Education

Artificial Intelligence is already embedded in K-12 education. Both students and teachers are using it for research, content creation, and problem-solving. 

Yet, most of Gen Z learns about AI through social media (55%), while only 15% learn from educators (Merriman & Sanz Sáiz, 2024). Moreover, despite 74% of European students aged 12–17 recognizing AI as central to their future careers, only 46% feel school prepares them adequately, and just 44% believe teachers are well-equipped to integrate this technology into learning (Vodafone Foundation, 2024).

It’s clear that traditional digital literacy is no longer sufficient. New provisions mandate AI literacy as essential for students’ education, making it a core requirement rather than an optional skill. Today, educators can no longer assume that general tech skills will prepare students for an AI-driven world.

The new “Why”: AI Act, PISA 2029, and the shift from optional to core competency

AI literacy is no longer an optional skill: regulatory and strategic developments make it a core educational priority. 

The EU AI Act (Art. 4, 2025) – EU Artificial Intelligence Act – requires providers and deployers of AI systems to ensure sufficient AI literacy competency as a professional requirement for their staff and other persons involved in the operation and use of AI systems.

Meanwhile, the PISA 2029 assessment will, for the first time, evaluate Media & Artificial Intelligence Literacy, benchmarking students’ ability to critically engage with AI tools, assess AI-generated content, and make ethical decisions in AI-mediated environments. 

Together, these developments shift AI literacy from a peripheral digital skill to a foundational competency, such as reading, writing, and computational thinking, essential for navigating everyday life, learning, and a future career.

The European Framework in practice: The 4 domains for building AI Literacy

The OECD/European Commission AI Literacy Framework provides a practical roadmap for schools, organizing AI literacy into four interconnected domains, each with concrete competencies and classroom applications:

1. Engaging with AI

“Engaging with AI in daily life involves using AI as a tool to access new content, information, or recommendations. These situations require learners to first recognize AI’s presence, then evaluate the accuracy and relevance of AI outputs.” –  OECD/European Commission AI Literacy Framework

Students must learn to interact with AI systems in everyday life:

• recognizing AI systems;
• critically evaluating AI-generated outputs;
• examining how AI systems can inform and limit perspectives;
• explaining how AI could be used to diffuse social biases;
• acknowledging AI’s environmental impact
• finding a common ground between the use of AI and ethical human principles.

For example, learners might assess whether an AI-generated essay contains errors or bias, fostering critical thinking and awareness.

2. Creating with AI 

“Creating with AI consists of collaborating with an AI system in a creative or problem-solving process. It involves guiding and refining AI output through prompts and feedback, while ensuring the content remains fair and appropriate.” – OECD/European Commission AI Literacy Framework

Students must collaborate with AI as a co-creator:

• exploring new perspectives built on original ideas;
• experimenting with different AI systems; 
• integrating AI feedback into their thought processes;
• recognizing the boundaries of intellectual property.

A typical activity could involve generating digital art or writing with an AI tool and refining it with human judgment.

3. Managing AI 

“Managing AI requires intentionally choosing how AI can support and enhance human work. This includes assigning structured tasks to AI, such as organizing information, so humans can focus on areas requiring creativity, empathy, and judgment.” – OECD/European Commission AI Literacy Framework

Students must know how to use AI as a tool that supports creativity, ethical reasoning, and empathy: 

• deciding whether to use AI according to the project;
• selecting which parts of a complex problem to entrust to AI;
• directing AI systems with specific instructions; 
• developing guidelines for ethical AI systems.

In essence, this domain focuses on decision-making around when to delegate tasks to AI and when human judgment is essential. 

4. Designing AI 

“Designing AI empowers learners to understand AI’s social and ethical impacts and how AI works by shaping how AI systems function.” – OECD/European Commission AI Literacy Framework

Students must explore how AI systems learn from data to understand the technical principles and ethical implications of AI design:

• exploring the applications of AI to solve global problems;
• discerning between human-designed and data-based algorithms;
• collecting and create valuable data for AI training; 
• evaluating the efficiency and accuracy of AI systems.

Activities might include experimenting with simple machine learning models to observe how biases in data affect outcomes.

Concrete strategies for school leaders and policymakers

These new policies target educators, school leaders, and policymakers committed to preparing learners for a digital future.

In this scenario, targeted support is essential because implementing AI literacy requires actionable strategies that go beyond technology provision. 

School leaders and policymakers should recognize key challenges — such as limited teacher training, inequitable access to AI tools, and students’ difficulty in discerning AI-generated content — and provide concrete solutions, including targeted professional development, curriculum integration across subjects, and safe, equitable access to AI technologies.

“Educators need targeted support to build their own AI competences and to develop effective pedagogies for guiding students through this learning journey.” – OECD/European Commission AI Literacy Framework

AI literacy is not a passing trend; it is essential for navigating daily life, creating with purpose, and preparing for the future of learning and working. To achieve this, schools must cultivate not only skills but also the human attitudes that underpin aware AI use: responsibility, curiosity, innovation, adaptability, and empathy. 

The ultimate goal is to move beyond producing passive users of AI toward empowered, thoughtful individuals who can leverage it ethically and creatively while sustaining core human qualities.