Robotics, AI & edtech news from around the world and across South Africa — with our take.
New U.S. Department of Education guidance urges school districts to evaluate edtech on verified learning outcomes and instructional value rather than screen time or login metrics.
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EdSurge examines the full footprint of AI adoption in schools, from teachers using 'vibe coding' to build resilient assignments to data center costs straining district budgets.
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School districts are formalizing AI integration for the 2026–2027 academic year, focusing on task-specific workflows, rapid differentiation, and administrative time savings.
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A coalition of six education organizations has launched a new framework to help K-12 districts evaluate and purchase technology, addressing widespread tech sprawl.
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As 34 US states issue AI guidance and introduce dozens of classroom bills, educators face the challenge of defining long-term career preparedness rather than regulating short-term technical skills.
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South Hampton K-8 school in Alabama has transformed its traditional library into a dynamic STEM hub through a strategic partnership with nonprofit Ed Farm, marking a first-of-its-kind renovation in the state.
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Educators Rita Finkel and Cobretti Williams argue that college degrees and the iterative process of writing offer developmental benefits that artificial intelligence cannot replicate.
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As schools face new curriculum mandates, edtech platforms often mistake basic interface translation for true bilingual instruction, leaving non-English speaking families behind.
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Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister Dr Nomusa Dube-Ncube has opened a new R24 million 4IR Centre of Excellence and three technical training facilities in Mossel Bay.
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At the ISTELive 26 conference, educator Andy Mann detailed a district-level STEM loaner library that lets teachers borrow high-cost equipment like $10,000 VR headsets.
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Cognitive research highlights why physical writing outperforms typing for early literacy, prompting a shift toward using classroom technology for teacher logistics rather than student screen time.
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As school STEM programs mature into advanced robotics and 3D modeling, educators are finding that standard student devices lack the local processing power required for industry-standard software.
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An international primary school teacher has successfully used "vibe coding" with large language models to build a personalized library recommendation system for their classroom.
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The KISS Institute for Practical Robotics is expanding its Botball and Junior Botball Challenge programs, utilizing standardized kits, early text-based coding, and a specialized multi-user controller to integrate autonomous robotics directly into the school day.
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The LEGO EV3 programming app reaches end-of-support on 31 July 2026, but the kits keep working. Community firmware like Pybricks, Python routes and repurposing keep old sets useful.
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At the May 2026 MICTSETA 4IR Symposium and IoT Hackathon, students built a smart farm and pitched it to the Minister of Higher Education. What that moment means for schools.
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The A301 backlash is really about transition management: grandfather hardware teams already own, be transparent on cost and timing, and treat non-US teams as first-class.
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A 2025 CSTA survey found most CS teachers never studied CS and half teach alone. The fix is not hiring specialists: it is curriculum, rehearsal, peer support and honest tools.
Read more →SPIKE Prime is being retired, but FLL teams can keep competing on it through the 2027-28 season. Here is how to buy spares before June 2026, budget the switch, and protect your coding skills.
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At SchoolScape 2026 the classroom kit stopped being the whole product. The dashboard behind it, a live view of every connected device, is now its own buying category.
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Humanoid robots stole the show at the February 2026 WCED STEAM conference. Here is what they are actually for in education, and where a class set of desktop kits still teaches more.
Read more →LEGO Education is retiring the entire SPIKE range, with sales ending 30 June 2026 and a pricier CS and AI kit as successor. Here is what schools with class sets should do now.
Read more →FIRST says the 2027-28 SystemCore season will allow one legal actuator, the REV A301. Here is what standardisation, sunk costs and tight budgets mean for FTC teams planning purchases.
Read more →SA EdTech Week 2025 put readiness in under-resourced schools first: design for power, connectivity and durability before software, and invest in teachers over tool count.
Read more →The Raspberry Pi Foundation is right that kids still need to code in the age of AI. The stronger version of the case is physical computing: code that has to move something real.
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AeroGarden is winding down and its WiFi app is promised only until March 2026. The lesson for edtech buyers: buy hardware that still works offline when the vendor walks away.
Read more →Belkin is ending Wemo's cloud and app on 31 January 2026. The lesson for anyone buying classroom tech: run the works-offline test before you spend, and buy tools you own, not rent.
Read more →In early 2025 a small lab showed capable AI can be cheap and open. The lesson for schools is that AI literacy now belongs with the basics, for every child, not just future engineers.
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