On July 15, 2026, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a new Office of AI coordinate national artificial intelligence standards, data centre rules, and copyright safeguards.
For Australia’s teaching profession, the announcement is a welcome step that, all going well, will provide schools with clearer guidance on how AI can be implemented safely and effectively in classrooms.
With the national conversation now moving from adopting AI to implementing it, schools are now looking for practical guidance on how to do this safely, consistently and in ways that genuinely improve teaching and learning.
Education Perfect, a leading learning, assessment and analytics platform for K-12 schools, believes this is where the Office of AI has the greatest opportunity to make an impact.
To help shape that next phase of the conversation, Education Perfect has developed a practical roadmap outlining the key priorities it believes should sit at the top of the Office of AI’s agenda for education.
The recommendations draw from the company's research with Australian school leaders, alongside its experience supporting schools as they navigate AI adoption in the classroom.
Below, The Educator speaks to Jill McGuire, Head of Learning Sciences at Education Perfect, about why implementation has overtaken adoption as schools' biggest AI challenge, what practical governance frameworks should look like, how the Office of AI could build teacher confidence, and why national benchmarks matter.
TE: Why is implementation now the biggest challenge for Australian schools when it comes to AI?
Teachers have been experimenting with AI-driven applications to support student learning for some time, but over the past 18 months it's moved firmly into the spotlight. Advances in generative AI have accelerated its use across every part of the education system, graduating the conversation from if AI has a place in teaching and learning to how it can be used safely, effectively, equitably, and in ways that add to, rather than detract from the craft. That's a very different challenge. AI has the potential to be an equaliser in education, but that won’t happen by default. Without thoughtful implementation, ongoing evaluation, and evidence informed practice, there’s a risk it reinforces existing inequities rather than reducing them.
We know that effective teaching and learning is built on evidence, professional judgement, and thoughtful practice, so it's important that AI is introduced with the same level of rigour, and therefore, the next step is giving schools the practical guidance to embed AI in ways that improve outcomes for students, support teachers, and ensure every learner has the opportunity to benefit, while strengthening rather than replacing the human side of learning.
TE: You've spoken about schools needing practical frameworks, clearer governance and national guidance to bring these together. What would that look like on the ground?
Schools shouldn't have to start from scratch every time a new technology emerges. That means giving schools practical implementation frameworks they can actually use, with clear guidance on governance, privacy, assessment, academic integrity and responsible classroom use, alongside professional learning that builds teachers' confidence. It also means helping schools make evidence-informed decisions about where AI adds the greatest value, which students benefit most and where more traditional approaches remain the better option. Questions around screen time, student wellbeing, and age-appropriate use should be considered as part of AI implementation, not treated as separate issues. Great teaching depends on relationships, expertise and professional judgement, so AI should complement those strengths by helping teachers personalise learning, create high-quality resources, provide timely feedback, and enable teachers to spend more of their time on the relational, responsive, and deeply human work that has the greatest impact on students — and less on the repetitive tasks that pull them away from it.
TE: Beyond regulation, how could an office of AI help build teachers' skills and confidence so they feel ready to use AI meaningfully and for impact in the classroom?
Regulation provides an important foundation, but capability is what turns policy into practice. Teachers need access to high-quality professional learning, clear guidance through best practice examples and opportunities to build confidence through experience. The Office of AI could play a valuable role by supporting consistent professional development, curating evidence-informed best practices and helping schools learn from one another, so successful approaches can be scaled across the system. When teachers understand how AI works and the contexts in which it adds real value, they are more likely to use it confidently and effectively. Ultimately, the goal is to enable teachers to spend less time on repetitive tasks and more valuable time on the relational, responsive, and deeply human aspects of teaching that have the greatest impact on student motivation and learning outcomes.
TE: How could national benchmarks under one unified approach help schools cut through the noise, work out what really works, and make evidence-based calls rather than guesswork?
Schools need a clear and consistent way to evaluate whether AI is delivering meaningful educational value. National benchmarks would provide a shared framework to assess AI against outcomes that matter, including student confidence and motivation to learn, teacher satisfaction retention, equitable student outcomes, and effective teaching practice. Ultimately, national benchmarks should measure whether AI supports teachers to deliver a curriculum that builds the critical skills students need to invent, innovate and thrive beyond secondary school. It would also give schools greater confidence about what success looks like and how to measure it, creating a more consistent approach to implementation across the sector. That means decisions can be guided by evidence rather than instinct, helping schools identify what works, for who, and under what circumstances learn from one another and build on proven practice. Without consistent benchmarks, it's difficult to know if AI is improving outcomes for all students or reinforcing existing inequalities.