As the new school year begins, artificial intelligence (AI) remains an unavoidable topic in education. At Tsinghua International School (THIS), faculty members share a common understanding:
"Good education does not necessarily require AI. But students will most certainly live in a future with AI."
These two sentences are THIS’ guiding principle. The first puts education back where it belongs, centered on people. The second defines THIS’ mission: to prepare students for an AI-driven world, not to let AI replace human potential.
Groundwork Since 2022
While most schools were still weighing their options, THIS had already begun systematically discussing the possibility of AI courses in 2022, at a time before ChatGPT was even released. By April of the following year, the school had published an internal research report, A Study on the Impact of Large Language Models on Pre-College Education, established an AI Education Committee, and launched regular teacher training and workshops.
Fang Yan, Principal of Tsinghua University High School (THUHS) and THIS, sets the tone: "We are cultivating talent for the future. The future they will enter is uncertain, but we must equip them with the capabilities to navigate it. In the age of AI, we must stay at the forefront while returning to the very foundations of education."
In August 2023, the Haidian District AI Experimental Class was officially launched at THUHS. That same year, THIS hosted its first invitation-only symposium on AI education, bringing together experts from academia, industry, and K-12 education to envision the future of learning.
From Curriculum to Int'l Stage
THIS's commitment to advancing AI in education remains unwavering.
In November 2025, THIS Executive Principal Renee Zhu attended the 11th VIS International Education Development Conference in Shanghai, where she provided a comprehensive overview of the school's active explorations in AI education. She shared that THIS has not only formally integrated AI literacy courses into its regular teaching system, but has also taken the lead in compiling and publishing an English-language AI literacy textbook tailored for primary and secondary school students, a progress lauded by other attendees.
In December of the same year, THIS was named as a "Leading International School for Innovation on AI Education 2025" by Sina Education and Weibo Education.
In June this year, THIS was busy with AI-related exchanges. Representatives from 18 schools across 12 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, visited THIS and they held in-depth exchanges with THIS Administration Team headed by Principal Zhu.
At the Symposium on AI Education Technology in International Schools held in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, Principal Zhu shared THIS' experience in using AI to assist classroom instruction, providing participants with practical, replicable operational references.
THIS was invited to participate in the World Federation of Key Schools' AI in Education Symposium. The Vice Principal of Operations Toni Dong shared case studies on student projects, subject-specific teaching resources, and AI-integrated curricula.
Also in June, THIS AI Affairs Coordinator Long Yuqing went to Jixi, Heilongjiang province in the northeast China, where he delivered a public lecture titled What Is Artificial Intelligence at a local middle school. Over the past two years, he has brought AI outreach to county and village schools in Sichuan, Guangxi provinces, among other regions, working to bridge the digital divide. This outreach reflects THIS' commitment to extending its AI education efforts beyond its own campus.
In July, the AIGE (AI General Education) 2026 National Symposium on AI General Education, hosted by the Chinese Information Processing Society and organized by Tsinghua University took place in Xi'an, Shaanxi province. Mr. Long and THIS international teacher John Weil presented papers and shared their practical experiences, and also led a training session.
At the conference, Mr. Long was appointed as a lifetime lecturer in Tsinghua University's AI General Education System for primary and secondary schools, the only middle school teacher to receive this honor, with his certificate personally signed by Academician Zhang Bo of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Mr. Weil received the Annual Special Contribution Award for his work in developing international teaching materials and an English-language AI general education framework.
In August, Mr. Long spoke at the AI and School Transformation Principals' Forum hosted by the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen), sharing THIS' practices with up to 200 international school principals and academic leaders from across China. He also led his team to first place in their category at the Principals' AI Agent Hackathon.
Students: From Users to Designers
Beyond strategic guidance, the school administration allocated dedicated funding for infrastructure and computing resources. "That was the greatest support," Mr. Long said, "and it removed many obstacles for teachers and students."
One of THIS' defining features is the deep involvement of students in shaping AI education.
AI unveiled: A Beginner's Guide for Young Minds, an English-language school-based textbook, was authored by some of THIS faculty members with guidance from Tsinghua University professors. Students contributed to the design of its interactive elements, making the material more accessible to their peers. The book is now in its second year of use on campus.
Students have also built Advanced Placement (AP) revision agents and Socratic learning dialogue tools, developed a lost-and-found mini-program using AI, and explored early depression detection and medical imaging models.
Conversational AI can help students look inward, discover their interests, and explore topics they might not feel comfortable discussing with others in traditional settings.
Of course, AI also brings challenges. It can allow students to bypass the struggle of learning and obtain answers directly, leading to cognitive offloading. It can weaken genuine human connections. But rejecting AI outright is hardly possible. When AI is embedded in nearly every aspect of daily life, from weather forecasts to route planning, drawing a clear line with AI is no longer a realistic option.
THIS’ approach is clear: neither avoid nor indulge, but teach students to be masters of AI.
Addressing Misuse
Students using AI to complete assignments is a reality faced by many teachers and parents. THIS' strategy, until reliable AI detection mechanisms mature, is to recommend that important assessments be completed in person, such as through paper-based exams or in-class presentations. This physically prevents the misuse of AI for dishonest purposes.
Mr. Long tried an approach in his math class that was agreed upon with his students: the focus is not on whether students use AI, but on whether they have truly learned.
1 If both homework and exams are good, the student naturally receives a high grade.
2 If homework is rough but exams are good, the grade remains relatively high.
3 If homework is perfect but exams are average, that is understandable.
4But if homework is perfect but exams are failing, the grade drops to zero.
"We use consistency gaps to make this judgment," Mr. Long explained. "If the gap exceeds a certain threshold, we consider that the student has used dishonest means to complete the learning task and is willing to bear the consequences."
Mr. Long also shared an interesting observation about "catching" AI-generated work, pointing out that AI-written texts has a distinctive style.
1 Phrases like "not... but rather..." are clear translations of English;
2 other telltale signs include "instead of asking... it might be better to ask..." and "a more appropriate way to put it is..."
3 along with heavy use of quotation marks and em dashes.
He emphasized, however, that these are merely observations and cannot serve as definitive judgments. Academic integrity ultimately relies on value guidance and teachers leading by example. THIS requires faculty to clearly annotate and explain any AI-assisted content they produce for students.
Key Lesson: Dept-Based AI Training
After years of exploration, THIS has accumulated valuable experience, the most important lesson being that "AI education training must be conducted by academic departments."
The school initially tried a "one-size-fits-all" approach, bringing all faculty together for training on AI trends and general-purpose tools. But the impact was limited. "Large-scale training has an effect, but not a substantial one,"
Different subjects have completely different needs. The math department, English department, and history department each have distinct visions of how AI can improve their classrooms, requiring entirely different solutions.
THIS has since shifted to a department-based model, where each academic group explores AI applications tailored to its own curriculum and teaching challenges.
Future: AI as Environment, Not Tool
"AI can help achieve good learning, but that does not mean good education cannot exist without AI"
In other words, AI is a 21st-century general-purpose technology, similar to the steam engine, electricity, computers, and semiconductors. Electricity fundamentally transformed schools, but that does not mean every learning activity requires it.
The perspective of media ecology deems that when a new technology enters society, it does not simply add a tool; it changes the entire environment. AI is no different. It is redefining how knowledge is acquired, how information is judged, and even the fundamental ways people interact. Schools cannot remain outside this transformation.
Good education must first answer the question of the end of education: what is its purpose, and what kind of people do we hope to cultivate? Otherwise, the cognitive offloading brought by AI will quickly becomethe end of education.
In English, the word "end" carries a double meaning: purpose and termination. If we fail to clarify the purpose of education, we may well reach its end.
THIS, in partnership with Tsinghua University's Center for AI General Education Research within the Department of Computer Science, has developed a complete AI general education curriculum for Grades 1 through 12. The school is now initiating a global alliance of partner schools to jointly build an ecosystem for AI general education.
School-Home Synergy
Returning to the starting point. No matter how far AI advances, THIS mission remains unchanged:
Tsinghua International School fosters creative critical thinkers who have roots in China and are prepared to lead in the global community.
"Good education does not necessarily require AI" is a clear-eyed conviction. It places education back where it belongs. Education has always been a human endeavor, and THIS' approach to AI education is to prepare students for the age of AI, not to let AI replace human potential. A teacher's example, an inspiring conversation, a spirited debate, a moment of reflection after failure: these are all forms of good education that need no AI at all. But THIS also believes that children growing up in the AI era need the ability to navigate this technology.
The new school year has begun, and THIS continues its journey. None of this progress would be possible without the vision of school leaders, the dedication of faculty, and the trust and partnership of parents.
We invite every parent who cares about their child's future to join us on this journey. Because the best education is, and always will be, a human education. And a human education is, and always will be, a shared endeavor between home and school.
