AI literacy in teacher education: mapping insights
How is artificial intelligence currently being integrated into teacher education across Europe — and where are the biggest opportunities and gaps?
AI-teach’s final mapping report brings together academic research, European best practices, curriculum screenings and focus group insights to build a comprehensive picture of AI in education. It examines how prepared pre-service teachers, in-service teachers and teacher educators are to engage with AI, and what is needed for more coherent, critical and pedagogically meaningful integration.
What does the mapping bring together?
The report combines several perspectives to understand both the current state of AI integration and the conditions needed to move forward. Together, they provide a European view of practice, teacher education and professional learning.
European practice
What promising approaches to AI in education are already emerging, and which recurring challenges do they reveal?
Teacher education curricula
How is AI embedded across teacher education programmes, and where is integration still fragmented or dependent on individual initiatives?
Teacher perspectives
What do teachers, future teachers and other stakeholders say about confidence, barriers, ethics and the support they need?
What are we learning?
Across the literature review, best-practice analysis, curriculum screenings and focus groups, several recurring patterns stand out.
Promising practice already exists
Several institutions are embedding AI literacy and practical AI use into teacher education, showing that meaningful integration is already possible.
Integration remains uneven
AI is still often confined to electives, ICT modules or individual lecturer initiatives, resulting in fragmented exposure and limited progression across programmes.
Structure and guidance are needed
Teacher education needs coherent AI learning pathways, clear ethical and assessment guidance, and stronger links between technical understanding and pedagogy.
Professional learning is essential
Ongoing, adaptive development and communities of practice can help educators build confidence, share expertise and move successful initiatives beyond isolated pilots.
What does this mean for teacher education?
The mapping points towards a shift from isolated AI initiatives to more systemic integration. AI literacy should develop progressively throughout teacher education, be connected to different subjects and pedagogical contexts, and be supported by clear institutional frameworks. These findings directly inform AI-teach’s next steps in designing professional learning that is practical, critical, responsible and responsive to educators’ different starting points.
Explore the mapping insights report
Read the complete analysis of the European AIED landscape, including the literature review, best practices, curriculum screenings, focus group findings and final gap analysis.
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This project has received funding from the European Union (European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA)) under grant agreement No 101196600.
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 the granting authority can be held responsible for them.