Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them. Project number: 101132761

AI literacy for dummies: a comprehensive EU framework in progress

Since 2022 AI has been a hot topic, but throughout the years there has been a rising urge to build regulations and frameworks to promote its development on a larger scale, as well as its usage and literacy in educational contexts.

On a European level the AILit Framework draft, released in May 2025, is the most recent guideline on AI literacy, also contributing to the PISA 2029 Media and Artificial Intelligence Literacy assessment. The goal of the initiative is to provide further insights on the ongoing discussion around AI literacy and new methods of teaching and learning to teachers, education leaders, education policymakers and learning designers.

The European Commission, OECD and Code.org and leading international experts joined forces in this initiative, which aligns with the Digital Education Action Plan, DigComp 2.2 and the recommendations given by the Council of the European Union in 2023 on digital education and skills. Additionally, other global frameworks were taken into account, such as UNESCO’s AI competencies for teachers and students, the Digital Promise AI literacy framework and the AI4K12 5 Big Ideas in AI.

AI literacy is essential to understand AI’s potential and risks to optimise its use in an ethical way. This publication aims at clarifying its definition and its role in education. In fact, if used correctly, AI can strengthen critical thinking and decision-making power.

In this regard, the AILit framework draft adopts an interdisciplinary approach and analyses three different themes (technical knowledge, the combination of human skills and AI, and ethical aspect), also conceiving four learner personas and stressing the importance of engaging, creating, managing and designing AI as prototypical domains of the AI literacy.

With the late Gen Z and Gen Alpha being the current generations most widely adopting and using AI tools in their daily lives, the AILit framework positions itself in line with the Digital First project, reinventing learning.

Innovation starts with being part of it. By providing students and teachers with new methodologies, their digital upskilling will be forging new opportunities for the future. Digital First supports digital natives in their educational journey in primary and secondary schools and considers their needs with the objective of enhancing their capacity to use technology in informatics classes. Empowering the students of today will reduce the algorithmic biases, inconsistencies and inaccuracies of tomorrow.

In 2026 the final version of the AILit framework will be out, but policymakers, teachers, educators, school leaders, NGO representatives, academics and other relevant stakeholders are encouraged to review this draft and be part of the dialogue.

To be part of the review, click here: http://teachai.org/ailiteracy/review

To consult the full version of the framework, download the draft here: https://ailiteracyframework.org/

Related Posts