Teaching Kids to Use — and Question

Artificial intelligence is moving into Belarusian classrooms.

Starting September 1, new approaches to studying AI will take effect. The goal is not merely to introduce the technology but to teach practical application.

AI can already write text, generate images, and answer complex questions. With those opportunities come clear risks: unreliable information, errors, and unsafe use. The task, therefore, is to prepare a generation capable of acting safely, ethically, and effectively in a rapidly evolving digital environment.

An updated informatics program is designed to help. It runs 139 academic hours and covers six areas — from algorithmization and programming to computer modeling. The central aim is functional literacy: students should not simply know the theory but be able to apply digital tools in practice.

Textbooks have been revised as well. The eighth-grade edition now contains a dedicated chapter on artificial intelligence. Through concrete examples, pupils will learn how to formulate clear queries for neural networks, verify the reliability of generated data, and use AI to process text, audio, and video. Attention is also given to the basics of cybersecurity and digital hygiene.

Natalia Rybachenok, a methodologist at the Academy of Education, explained the rollout: “Artificial intelligence technologies will be applied in all grades starting from the sixth. In the sixth and seventh grades it will mainly be an introduction to using generated images or text. In the ninth grade artificial intelligence is introduced into 3D modeling.”

Deeper engagement will come through a new elective course, “Applied Artificial Intelligence Technologies,” offered to students in grades 8 through 11. It runs one hour a week throughout the year. Four modules introduce AI services and generative models, teach content creation, guide the development of personal projects, and show how to apply the tools in regular studies.

“Students become familiar with the capabilities of artificial intelligence technology by integrating it into various subjects,” Rybachenok said. “This includes translation for foreign languages, modeling of physical and chemical processes, and of course programming.”

In this way Belarus joins the global trend of bringing AI into school education. Students receive the chance, here and now, to master tools that are steadily becoming part of everyday life.