In the United States, artificial intelligence tools are increasingly reshaping school education and approaches to learning, yet most teachers still do not receive official guidance on how to work with such technologies, according to a study by Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation.
According to the study, about eight in ten K-12 teachers in the United States said they had received no formal instruction on using AI in their work.
A total of 71% of respondents said they had not been shown how to use AI for feedback or professional coaching in teaching. Another 69% reported receiving no guidance on applying AI to individualized instruction and tutoring.
Most teachers also said they had not received recommendations on using AI for analyzing student performance, administrative work, grading assignments, evaluating tests, or preparing educational materials.
What Guidance on AI Tools Teachers Say They Have Received
Survey of 2,069 U.S. public school teachers (K–12), February 9–March 2, 2026; among those for whom the task applies Formal written policy or official rules Informal guidance (verbal / general norms / expectations) No guidance Receiving Feedback or Coaching on Teaching 7% 23% 71% One-on-One Instruction or Tutoring for Students 5% 27% 69% Analyzing Patterns in Learning and Performance Data 6% 30% 64% Administrative Work (Documents, Emails, Reports) 7% 34% 59% Grading and Evaluating Assignments or Coursework 8% 35% 58% Supplementing Classroom Instruction 7% 35% 57% Adapting Materials to Students' Needs 8% 43% 49% Creating Tests, Quizzes, and Assessments 9% 43% 48% Creating Worksheets, Assignments, and Projects 8% 45% 47% Lesson Preparation (Planning, Reviewing Materials) 9% 46% 45%
Data: Gallup
Education experts say AI is already becoming part of the classroom and students’ future professional training, and that the question is no longer whether schoolchildren will use such tools, but whether teachers themselves are prepared for it.
All4Ed CEO Amy Loyd told Axios that schools should help educators adapt to these technologies and provide them with “ongoing learning and capacity building” needed to work confidently with AI.
The authors of the report note that there are still no unified rules governing AI use in schools. According to Brisk Teaching founder Arman Jaffer, the use of AI in elementary school differs significantly from how such technologies might be applied, for example, in advanced high-school mathematics courses.
He said many school administrators still treat AI as an optional digital tool—similar to Canva or Quizlet—even as the technology begins reshaping teaching methods and the organization of the learning process itself.
The study also found that even in schools where teachers had received guidance on AI, it most often came in the form of informal advice or verbal understandings rather than a comprehensive institutional policy.
Teachers in wealthier schools were also more likely to receive such guidance than staff at schools with more limited resources.
Experts warn that AI has the potential both to strengthen the best parts of education and to deepen existing problems. In their view, the key issue is not the scale of adoption, but how thoughtfully the technology is used in the classroom.