iFlytek Institute and CAET Publish 2026 Blue Book on AI-Powered Future Classrooms
A new blue book detailing how artificial intelligence is reshaping classrooms was released in China on September 19, offering one of the most systematic frameworks yet for building "future classrooms" at scale.
The "2026 Smart Education Development Blue Book — AI for Future Classrooms" was compiled by the iFlytek Educational Technology Institute and the Intelligent Education Research Center of the State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Intelligence, together with the Intelligent Education Committee of the China Association for Educational Technology (CAET). It was launched at the 8th Intelligent Education Forum and the committee’s second annual academic conference, held at Beijing Normal University’s Zhuhai campus and attended by more than 1,500 people.
The report responds directly to a policy push. China’s Ministry of Education and four other departments issued the "AI + Education" Action Plan in April 2026, explicitly calling for the creation of future classrooms and for closing the "last mile" of AI adoption in education. Earlier milestones include the China Smart Education White Paper released in May 2025 and the Hangzhou Initiative on AI Education from May 2026.
The blue book runs to eight chapters organised in four parts. The first examines the deep drivers reshaping classrooms and redefines their positioning, tracing the technological evolution from the "Internet Plus" era to today’s "AI Plus" stage and sketching an ecosystem with new characteristics, new relationships and new logic. The second part covers learning environments: network, metaverse and intelligent learning spaces; smart classrooms, smart subject classrooms, digital-intelligent laboratories and smart training rooms; and new resource formats such as digital textbooks, virtual simulation resources and teaching agents.
The third part turns to practice. Drawing on 366 collected cases, it maps new teaching and learning modes — project-based, experiential, blended, personalized, collaborative, game-based and dialogic learning — alongside process-oriented, continuous and diversified approaches to evaluation and classroom management. The closing section looks ahead, discussing how future classrooms should evolve, how construction should be sequenced, and how risks and safeguards should be handled.
A companion theoretical paper, "AI Creating Future Classrooms: Logic, System and Typical Practices," has been published in the CSSCI-indexed journal E-education Research. It proposes a four-dimensional logic for classroom redesign, a seven-element upgrade pattern and a five-layer model of technology iteration, and describes a three-level operating mechanism for the future classroom ecosystem.
The launch ceremony was officiated by Zhang Weidong, deputy director-general of the MOE’s Department of Science, Technology and Informatization; Chen Donghai, a level-two inspector at the Guangdong Provincial Department of Education; Beijing Normal University deputy Party secretary Wei Wei; CAET vice presidents Chen Li, Zhong Xiaoliu and Nie Xiaolin; Northwest Normal University professor Guo Shaoqing; and iFlytek Educational Technology Institute professor Liu Bangqi.
The authors position the report as a reference for education administrators, schools and industry, arguing that intelligent technology should serve students’ deep learning, higher-order thinking and creativity. Risk assessment runs through the final chapters, reflecting growing attention in China to the governance of AI in the classroom as well as its promise.
The "2026 Smart Education Development Blue Book — AI for Future Classrooms" was compiled by the iFlytek Educational Technology Institute and the Intelligent Education Research Center of the State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Intelligence, together with the Intelligent Education Committee of the China Association for Educational Technology (CAET). It was launched at the 8th Intelligent Education Forum and the committee’s second annual academic conference, held at Beijing Normal University’s Zhuhai campus and attended by more than 1,500 people.
The report responds directly to a policy push. China’s Ministry of Education and four other departments issued the "AI + Education" Action Plan in April 2026, explicitly calling for the creation of future classrooms and for closing the "last mile" of AI adoption in education. Earlier milestones include the China Smart Education White Paper released in May 2025 and the Hangzhou Initiative on AI Education from May 2026.
The blue book runs to eight chapters organised in four parts. The first examines the deep drivers reshaping classrooms and redefines their positioning, tracing the technological evolution from the "Internet Plus" era to today’s "AI Plus" stage and sketching an ecosystem with new characteristics, new relationships and new logic. The second part covers learning environments: network, metaverse and intelligent learning spaces; smart classrooms, smart subject classrooms, digital-intelligent laboratories and smart training rooms; and new resource formats such as digital textbooks, virtual simulation resources and teaching agents.
The third part turns to practice. Drawing on 366 collected cases, it maps new teaching and learning modes — project-based, experiential, blended, personalized, collaborative, game-based and dialogic learning — alongside process-oriented, continuous and diversified approaches to evaluation and classroom management. The closing section looks ahead, discussing how future classrooms should evolve, how construction should be sequenced, and how risks and safeguards should be handled.
A companion theoretical paper, "AI Creating Future Classrooms: Logic, System and Typical Practices," has been published in the CSSCI-indexed journal E-education Research. It proposes a four-dimensional logic for classroom redesign, a seven-element upgrade pattern and a five-layer model of technology iteration, and describes a three-level operating mechanism for the future classroom ecosystem.
The launch ceremony was officiated by Zhang Weidong, deputy director-general of the MOE’s Department of Science, Technology and Informatization; Chen Donghai, a level-two inspector at the Guangdong Provincial Department of Education; Beijing Normal University deputy Party secretary Wei Wei; CAET vice presidents Chen Li, Zhong Xiaoliu and Nie Xiaolin; Northwest Normal University professor Guo Shaoqing; and iFlytek Educational Technology Institute professor Liu Bangqi.
The authors position the report as a reference for education administrators, schools and industry, arguing that intelligent technology should serve students’ deep learning, higher-order thinking and creativity. Risk assessment runs through the final chapters, reflecting growing attention in China to the governance of AI in the classroom as well as its promise.
JMDedu is a leading B2B EdTech Media in China that informs and connects business professionals through our reports, events, and information services. Our mission is to drive the advancement of education. Our network spans the education industry in China as well as globally, including entrepreneurs, investors, startups, educators, business decision-makers, and policy decision-makers.
Copyright © 2014-2026 en.jmdedu.com All Rights Reserved