Urgent Action: Sign the Petition for a 2 Year Moratorium on the Use of AI in NYC Schools

Before AI Becomes Another School Mistake, Let’s Hit Pause. Sign the petition, now.

Every few years, education gets swept up in the next “revolution.”

Remember when mobile tablets and cell phones were going to transform learning? When endless standardized testing was supposed to raise achievement? When social media was simply another way for kids to connect?

We were told to move fast.

Only later did we start asking harder questions.

Artificial intelligence is arriving in our schools with the same sense of inevitability. Contracts are being signed. New AI-enabled programs are appearing. Students are already being encouraged—or expected—to use AI in ways that would have seemed unthinkable just a year or two ago.

But where has the public conversation been?

Where was the careful review?

Where was the independent evidence that this is actually good for children?

A growing coalition of parents, teachers, education advocates, researchers and community leaders isn’t saying “never.”

They’re saying something much simpler.

Slow down.

The petition now circulating across New York City calls for a two-year moratorium on AI use in NYC public schools.

Not forever.

Just long enough for the Department of Education to honestly evaluate what AI is doing to student learning, privacy, mental health, classroom relationships, and even its environmental costs before making it part of everyday instruction.

That’s not an extreme position.

It’s what we usually do when something new could have lasting consequences for children.

The concerns aren’t imaginary.

Researchers have raised questions about whether AI weakens critical thinking and creativity. Privacy advocates warn that many AI systems collect enormous amounts of student data. Others point to growing evidence of bias in AI systems, along with the energy and water demands created by massive data centers. Those concerns—and more—are outlined by the coalition supporting the petition.

Reasonable people can disagree about where AI belongs in education.

Some argue students need to learn how to use it because it will shape the future workforce. That’s a debate worth having.

But shouldn’t that debate happen before AI becomes deeply embedded in the nation’s largest school system?

That is what this petition is really about.

Taking a breath before making a decision that may be difficult to undo.

The organizers have set an attainable goal:

5,000 signatures this week.

Whether you’re a parent, educator, student, or simply someone who believes schools should put children ahead of technology companies, your signature matters.

If enough New Yorkers speak now, City Hall and the Department of Education will have to listen.

The window to influence this decision is still open.

It won’t stay that way for long.

Please sign the petition today—and if you agree with it, share it with someone else. Five minutes of action today could help shape how AI enters New York City’s classrooms for years to come

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Learn more:

https://nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com/2025/12/our-forum-on-risks-of-using-ai-in.html

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