Greek secondary school teachers will undergo a crash course in the use of artificial intelligence tools, as the country takes on a front-line role in incorporating AI into its education system.
Next week, staff at 20 schools will receive training in a special version of ChatGPT tailored for academic institutions under a new agreement between the centre-right government and OpenAI.
“We have to accept that AI does not exist in a parallel universe. AI is here,” Education Minister Sofia Zacharaki said ahead of the pilot program’s launch.
The initiative, which is scheduled to be expanded nationally in January, makes Greece one of the first countries to pioneer the use of generative AI in the classroom.
The workshops will initially focus on teachers learning the new technology to support lesson planning, research, and individualized instruction, before ChatGPT Edu is gradually integrated into schools. When older middle school students are allowed to use the tool next spring, officials say access will be closely monitored.
Following Estonia, Greece is also actively adopting technology. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ pro-business government has ambitions to turn Greece into a technology hub by establishing one of Europe’s first AI factories in Athens.
Mitsotakis warned that there would be “serious social unrest” if the AI revolution was seen as only to enrich tech companies, but his government was one of the first to develop a national strategy to prepare Greeks for “the developments that all kinds of applications of this technology will bring.”
In schools, where the majority of students already use apps like ChatGPT, the government has been guided by the mantra: If you can’t beat the bots, make friends with them.
However, the reaction of some Greeks was less enthusiastic.
Middle school students have expressed concerns that they will be “outmaneuvered and controlled” by AI if it is allowed to develop unrestricted, citing the pressures of an overly exam-focused education system.
“It’s very scary,” said Aristidis Toros, a 17-year-old who took part in a demonstration in central Athens that was also aimed at protesting the direction of educational reforms. “They’re asking so much of us, and now this is it: AI has no soul. It’s a machine.”
Chris Lehane, OpenAI’s chief international affairs officer, said Greece’s efforts to pilot chatbots represent “a new chapter in education” for the country. Under the agreement, the U.S. company pledged to oversee the use of “best practices for safe and effective classroom use.”
Skeptics worry that Greece is becoming a laboratory for technologies that carry inherent risks, such as the erosion of critical and creative thinking.
At the downtown offices of the Secondary School Teachers’ Federation Olme, there was consternation at the prospect of its introduction.
“This was a key discussion in our recent parliament, and many people voiced their concerns,” said Dimitris Aktipis, a senior government official, adding that there were concerns that these changes could ultimately lead to “teacherless” classes.
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Educators also fear the new technology will worsen screen addiction in a country that will soon become the first country in Europe to block social media access for children under 15.
“After 40 years of teaching, I can honestly say that screens have destroyed our children,” said Dimitris Panayiotkopoulos, who retired this year as an elementary school principal. “AI is not a panacea. When children are spoon-fed answers, it poses a huge threat to critical thinking.”
He said the government should instead focus on improving facilities in a country where less than 5% of the budget is allocated to the education sector, despite demands for an increase for decades.
“In the winter, you can see children shivering in their classrooms because they only have the heating on for one hour,” Panayiotkopoulos said. “They talk about the digital age, but often basic things like electricity and plugs don’t work. This is a terrible situation that needs to be addressed urgently.”
Olme represents 85,000 teachers, most of them full-time, who talk about a culture of rote learning in the classroom.
“We shouldn’t become technophobic. After all, AI will help educators work more efficiently,” says Panos Karagiorgos, a secondary school physics teacher.
“But a problem arises when AI is used in a system whose sole purpose is to produce students who can pass exams. Schools are not interested in producing well-rounded children, which in itself stifles creativity.”
Until now, AI has only been used in private schools in Greece. The University of Athens, the alma mater of several Greek leaders including Mitsotakis, was one of the first universities to use AI to assist with course design and instruction.
“I don’t think Greece should miss this passing train,” said Alexis Firaktopoulos, chairman of the school’s board of directors, adding that he wholeheartedly supports the integration of AI into the national curriculum, provided that critical thinking and creativity are protected.
“There are no easy answers with AI. AI needs to be used as an educational tool with many guardrails in place.”
