AQW 43286/22-27

Ms Kate Nicholl
Alliance Party
South Belfast

Tabled Date: 26/03/2026
Answered On Date: 01/04/2026
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Education to detail any engagement (i) he has had; (ii) or intends to have, with the Scottish Government in relation to their Artificial Intelligence in schools: guidelines and guardrails' document, published on 25 March 2026.

Answer:

My Department is focused on the guidance needed for schools here and has been leading a rigorous process, with a range of educational partners, to develop guidance in respect of the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in which draws on research and practice in other jurisdictions across the United Kingdom and internationally.

Northern Ireland is in a unique position as the Education Authority’s Education Information Solution (EdIS) provides a safe online platform for use by teachers and pupils which ensures that data inside a school’s own ecosystem is not shared publicly. The work being taken forward includes the development of a wide range of online support materials which will be made available on its EdIS GenAI Platform.

A comparison with the guidance produced in Scotland highlights that there are many similarities in terms of the advice it provides to education professionals and the checks and balances required to ensure GenAI is used safely and responsibly in schools. I hope to issue guidance to schools shortly.