New York City is banning generative AI for public school students from pre-K through 8th grade. The rule is part of a bigger plan to limit classroom technology in the nation's largest school district.
The moratorium will last one year. It affects nearly 600,000 students, which is about two-thirds of the district's total enrollment.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced the policy on Wednesday alongside Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels. He said the goal is to protect students' critical thinking skills and their relationships with teachers.
"Each day when our children come to school we teach them to ask questions, to challenge assumptions, to interrogate the premise, to ask why," Mamdani said at a news conference. "When it comes to AI in our schools, we hold an obligation to do the same."
What The Ban Covers
The city will disable or shut down AI features in more than 38 programs already used in schools. These tools did not meet the new safety and oversight standards set by the district.
Companion chatbots will be blocked for every grade level. Mainstream AI services such as ChatGPT and Claude will also be blocked across all grades.
The policy sets screen time limits too. Students in grades three through five will have a suggested cap of 30 minutes a day. Students in grades six through eight will have a cap of 45 minutes.
There are exceptions built into the policy. Students with disabilities and English language learners will not be subject to the same limits.
Teachers are still allowed to use AI for lesson planning and other operational tasks. They cannot use it for grading or student assessments.
High School Rules Are Different
High school students will not face the same ban. Instead, they will take AI literacy classes twice a year.
Some high schoolers will also join pilot programs. These will introduce them to a small number of AI platforms under teacher supervision.
New York City is not the only district making changes. The Los Angeles Unified School District has also placed new limits on classroom screen use and generative AI access this year.
New York state already banned personal phones during the school day last year. City officials called Wednesday's AI policy the most expansive of its kind in the country.
Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, praised the screen time limits and the exceptions for special needs students. He said questions remain about how the city will judge which AI tools are safe going forward.
Samuels acknowledged that stopping students from using AI at home will be difficult. He asked parents to help monitor their children's technology use outside of school.
Mamdani said he believes the new rules will help students and teachers in the long run.
"The tech industry wants us to believe that AI in early education is not only inevitable, but that it is necessary," he said. "We do not see it that way."
