AI Literacy Becomes Part of Primary Education in Slovakia

From March 2026, artificial intelligence becomes part of primary education in Slovakia. The Ministry of Education is expanding the national curriculum to include AI literacy so that students better understand the technologies shaping everyday life and the future labor market.

The Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth of the Slovak Republic has approved amendments to the National Curriculum for Primary Education. The changes take effect in March 2026, and schools will begin integrating AI literacy into teaching from the next school year.

This step represents an important milestone in the Plan for Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence in Education.

Artificial intelligence already influences the daily lives of children and young people. Students use AI when searching for information, creating texts, translating content and interacting with personalized online services. Therefore, schools must respond to rapid technological progress and evolving social demands.

The goal is not only to teach students how to use AI tools. Instead, schools will help them understand how artificial intelligence works, recognize its limits, critically evaluate its outputs and use it safely and responsibly.

The new curriculum focuses on long-term competencies rather than specific tools, which change quickly. As a result, students will develop stable skills needed for life in a digital society.

By the end of primary school, students should be able to distinguish between human and artificial intelligence, use AI effectively for learning, maintain critical thinking and develop a healthy relationship with digital technologies.

AI will also function as a cross-curricular topic. Teachers will connect it with languages, social sciences, natural sciences and the arts. This approach will help students understand AI not only as a technological tool but also as a social, ethical and environmental phenomenon.

What students will learn

First cycle

All students will learn to recognize technologies that use artificial intelligence in everyday life. They will understand that machines learn from data and will create simple prompts for AI tools under teacher guidance. At the same time, schools will emphasize that AI does not possess human qualities and cannot replace real human relationships.

Second cycle

Students will learn that the quality of data influences the quality of AI outputs. With teacher support, they will use generative AI as a learning assistant. They will practice verifying information across multiple sources and reflect on ethical and social impacts of technology. Schools will also address healthy digital balance.

Third cycle

Students will deepen their understanding of large language models, AI assistants and AI agents. They will learn to choose appropriate AI tools for specific tasks, critically evaluate outputs, recognize manipulation and misinformation and transparently acknowledge when they use AI in their work.

Teachers will also emphasize privacy protection and the broader social and environmental impacts of artificial intelligence.

Support for teachers and schools

The Ministry of Education has already published initial teaching materials and is preparing a national framework of AI competencies for teachers. At the same time, the ministry will provide systematic training for educators and other school professionals.

By introducing AI literacy into the national curriculum, Slovakia joins countries that actively follow the recommendations of UNESCO, OECD and the European Union in the field of artificial intelligence education.

By the end of 2026, the ministry also plans to expand AI topics into secondary school curricula.