Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) have agreed on a new “National AI Safety & Privacy Standard” for schools.
The agreement, which was announced in a joint press release on Wednesday, establishes legally enforceable protections meant to safeguard students, families and educators from AI misuse in classrooms.
Enforceable Protections
The standard bars companies from using student data to train AI, prohibits tracking students, requires human oversight over AI decisions, and urges companies to give educators and parents clear, plain-language answers about their tools. School districts can build these terms directly into their Microsoft contracts.
The agreement centers on three priorities: protecting student and educator data from being sold or reused, requiring strong safeguards and human oversight to prevent harmful AI experiences, and giving families clear visibility into how AI is used and what data is collected.
“We have forged a hard-fought, iron-clad privacy agreement with real teeth that protects students and families,” AFT President Randi Weingarten said. “Anything less than legally enforceable provisions is simply a wish list.”
Weingarten added that “HIPAA and FERPA never envisioned the advent of AI,” and said tech companies must take responsibility for products marketed to schools.
Union, Microsoft React
UFT President Michael Mulgrew, who leads the 200,000-member New York City AFT affiliate, said the deal “empowers school districts to end agreements and seek damages from bad actors who break the rules.”
Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith noted that the company plans to extend the agreement to every school district in the nation.
The standard builds on the AFT’s 2024 “Commonsense Guardrails” framework and its National Academy for AI Instruction, which trains educators on responsible AI use.
Wider Debate on AI in Schools
The agreement follows New York City’s moratorium on student-facing AI use for children through eighth grade, amid a broader wave of restrictions being weighed in Los Angeles and Chicago.
It also comes after Anthropic’s push into classrooms through Claude for Teachers, built partly around AFT safety guidelines.
Parents, meanwhile, have raised concerns about children’s early exposure to AI chatbots, with one describing today’s students as “the guinea pig generation.”
Disclaimer: This content was produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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