Seputarkarawang.com - Karawang, The government has officially issued a Joint Decree (SKB) of 7 Ministers which regulates guidelines for the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in formal, non-formal and informal education environments. The regulations set on March 12 2026 emphasize that AI technology must be human-centered, functioning as a tool to strengthen intellectual capacity and not a substitute for critical thinking skills. Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture, Pratikno, together with seven other ministers emphasized that dependence on instant AI results can trigger a decrease in reasoning power or cognitive debt in students.In this latest guideline, the government divides the use of digital technology and AI into three zone categories, namely red, yellow and green. The Red Zone completely prohibits the use of AI in daily, mid-semester and final exam activities, as well as fundamental assignments aimed at measuring students' basic understanding. Meanwhile, the Yellow Zone allows limited use, such as during the essay brainstorming stage, with the requirement to attach a statement of integrity. The Green Zone actually encourages collaboration between humans and machines to practice critical analysis and creative visualization of presentation material.
Not only for students, teaching staff are also given special guidance in using AI as a learning planning assistant, such as preparing a lesson plan framework or simplifying complex concepts. However, teachers are still required to carry out strict verification of AI output to avoid potential errors in the form of data hallucinations or information bias that is not in line with the local cultural context. Final responsibility and instructional decisions remain in the hands of humans as the main controllers of technology, not machine algorithms.This rule also contains strict sanctions for those who misuse AI in the classroom. The education unit has the authority to give warnings, reduce grades, and even give zero marks if violations of academic integrity are found. In fact, severe sanctions in the form of summonsing the student's parents or guardians can be carried out according to the level of the violation that occurred. This step was taken to instill healthy skepticism and intellectual honesty in students so that they always verify every information and line of reasoning from artificial intelligence products. The implementation of the 7 Ministerial Decree is expected to be able to maintain the cognitive sovereignty of Indonesia's young generation amidst the massive development of digital technology. For the education ecosystem in Karawang, this policy is both a challenge and an opportunity for schools to start integrating AI wisely without sacrificing the quality of students' thinking. With clear zone boundaries, it is hoped that AI will no longer be a modern "cheating" tool, but rather an assistant partner capable of stimulating new ideas that are still evaluated in depth by human common sense.
