Google will in future switch off Gemini, Gemini Notebook, Gemini in Classroom and Google Search for student accounts at primary and secondary schools until the schools' administrators explicitly turn the services on. The change was announced by Chris Phillips, who is responsible for Google's education business, in the Google blog. The rule applies to accounts that Google classifies as K-12, that is, schools up to graduation. The company does not mention universities in this context.
At the same time, Guided Learning is available worldwide in Google Classroom as of now. The learning mode guides students through a task with follow-up questions and hints instead of giving away the solution. In Search, Google is still testing the same mode in November at selected schools in the USA.
What changes for student accounts?
Until now, the opposite principle has applied: Gemini in Classroom is turned on by default for teachers and students of all age groups, as the Google Workspace Admin Help states (as of October 26, 2026). In future, the school will have to actively consent for student accounts. A date for the change is still pending; the company wants to share details with schools "in the coming months" before the launch.
Google Search is also on Google's list. Without approval, students would see a notice from their school instead of the search, Phillips told the New York Times, as Ars Technica reports. The trade publication sees schools facing a difficult decision as a result: a school that wants to keep AI out of the classroom then also loses the search engine.
How does Guided Learning work in Classroom?
Teachers create an assignment in Classroom and attach Guided Learning as material. Up to five sources from the course or as an uploaded file, such as Docs, slides or PDFs, serve as the basis. In the Classroom Help, Google recommends a single source per assignment.
How to use Guided Learning
Learning mode in Google Classroom, since November 3, 2026 in all editions of Workspace for Education
- ApprovalThe school IT turns on the Gemini app for teachers and students
- AssignmentCreate an assignment in Classroom and attach Guided Learning
- SourcesChoose up to five sources, Google recommends one per assignment
- PreviewTest the flow from the student's perspective, then assign
- EvaluationView the class's frequent questions and chat histories
The teacher can only see chat histories if Gemini activity is saved
Sources: Google Blog, Classroom Help, Google Workspace Admin Help
Students work in a focus mode that draws on the teacher's material. The teacher sees who has opened the assignment, which questions come up frequently in the class and, if Gemini activity is saved, the complete chat histories. These evaluations are available in all editions of Google Workspace for Education, including the free version Education Fundamentals. A prerequisite is that the school IT has enabled the Gemini app for teachers and students. Gemini in Classroom is available in all Classroom languages for which the Gemini app is also available, German included.
Google backs up the benefit with its own studies: in an experiment with more than 300 students at the University of Tokyo, the group using Guided Learning in the Gemini app improved by 8.1 percentage points compared with its pre-test after half a day of studying, while the comparison group using usual online aids improved by 5.3 percentage points. A study by Eedi and Google DeepMind is more cautious: a math tutor based on Gemini helped as well as a human tutor immediately after a mistake, but after ten weeks the group was not ahead in the standardized math test.
What this means for you
If you work with Classroom as a teacher, you can now try out Guided Learning with a small exercise, ideally with a single source. Before assigning, check in the preview from the student's perspective whether the mode actually asks follow-up questions with your material instead of giving away the solution. Google itself points out that Gemini makes mistakes. How you can use Gemini in everyday life is shown by the Gemini crash course on TutKit.
If you manage your school's IT, it's best to document now which Gemini services are enabled in the Admin console for student accounts. It makes sense to clarify with the school administration and data protection officers before the changeover whether the school will allow AI and search or forgo both. The demand is there: in the third Hessian student survey, 64 percent of respondents have AI explain the material to them.
Google announced the changes on November 3, 2026.
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