📰 AI & Education: What's New? - February 2026

Hello and thanks for reading! This is your February update from the Pedagogical AI team.

We bring you the latest AI in education developments from Finland and beyond to help you teach, lead, and learn with confidence in the age of AI.

🎯 Top AI News in Education

🇫🇮 Finnish News

• Finland strengthens AI literacy to help students spot deepfakes. Media literacy is expanding toward identifying AI generated images and videos. Read more

• Opetushallitus publishes practical guidance for early childhood and schools. A central hub with legislation, recommendations, and supporting materials. Open the guidance

• University of Helsinki shares guidance for using AI in teaching. Focus on course design, assessment, and responsible use. See the guidance

• Educa 2026 featured classroom AI practice and policy conversations. Sessions covered classroom use, assessment, and consistent guidance. Explore Educa

• TeachBob.com launches a learn by teaching tool for revision and AI literacy. Learners teach an AI student by explaining topics in their own words and then test understanding. Try TeachBob

🇪🇺 European News

• European Commission provides implementation resources for the EU AI Act. Useful starting point for schools and edtech teams planning compliance and transparency. AI Act hub

• AI Act FAQ: navigating practical questions. A Q&A page that helps interpret timelines and obligations. Read the FAQ

• AI literacy Q&A under the AI Act. Clarifies expectations around AI literacy and supervision by national authorities. Read the Q&A

• Council of Europe prepares a Compass for AI and Education. A practical tool focused on AI literacy, governance, teaching, assessment, and edtech evaluation. See context

🌍 Global News

• OECD Digital Education Outlook 2026 maps evidence on GenAI in education. Synthesizes research on effective uses and risks when pedagogy is not explicit. Read the report

• State level AI policy activity grows in the US. Many states move on guidance, procurement, literacy, and guardrails. Read the overview

• Parents and students ask for clearer AI safety education. Surveys and reporting point toward consistent norms and communication with families. Example coverage

• Beijing plans minimum yearly AI instruction in schools. Policy allows AI as a standalone course or integrated into other subjects. Read the policy report

💡 Teaching Tip of the Month

Do a 7 minute deepfake drill.
Show students two short items (one authentic, one AI generated). Ask them to write a 3 step verification plan (source, context, cross check). Then let them use an AI assistant to list possible red flags and compare with their plan. Close by asking what evidence would actually change their mind.

🔧 Recommended Resources

• Opetushallitus: AI guidance hub. Legislation, recommendations, and support materials. Open

• eNorssi: Opettajan tekoälyopas 2.0. Classroom ready examples and scenarios. Download

• EU AI Act resources. Official pages for timelines, obligations, and supporting materials. Open

• University of Helsinki: AI in teaching guidance. Ideas and guardrails for course design and assessment. Read

• TeachBob.com for active recall and AI literacy. Quick classroom use: students teach Bob, then reflect on gaps. Try it

👩‍🏫 Teacher Insight

"We think that having good media literacy skills is a very big civic skill."
Kiia Hakkala (Associated Press reporting on Finland's approach)
Source: https://apnews.com/article/194b32d8829838bfe47469d6ff357689

📅 Upcoming Events & Training

• FCAI events. Calendar

• AI in Higher Education Summit 2026 (Paris, March 17 to 18, 2026). Event page

• EDEN 2026 Annual Conference (Porto, June 14 to 16, 2026). Event page

• OEB Global Conference 2026 (Berlin, December 2 to 4, 2026). Event page

🙌 Contribute to Next Issue

Tried an AI related lesson, student project, or tool that worked well?
Share it with us and we'll feature select teacher stories and resources in the next issue.
Let's keep learning from each other!