Practical support for students, teachers and mentors
Generative AI is becoming part of education, but many schools are still considering how to use it responsibly. How can AI help students reflect on their development and explore future
study or career options without replacing their own thinking or the professional role of the teacher?
The Erasmus+ project AI-GUIDE has developed and tested a practical approach for using
generative AI in study and career guidance.
Project number: 2024-2-NL01-KA210-VET-000272600
The project was carried out by:
- ● Prosper College in the Netherlands;
- ● Politehnicka skola in Serbia;
- ● Zarasų profesinė mokykla in Lithuania.
What is AI-GUIDE?
AI-GUIDE helps students use generative AI to:
- reflect on learning and practical experiences;
- identify strengths and development needs;
- formulate personal learning goals;
- explore study and career options;
- prepare conversations with a teacher or mentor;
- decide on realistic next steps.
The methodology distinguishes three roles:
- The student brings experiences, questions and goals and remains responsible for choices and decisions.
- AI asks questions, helps structure reflection and supports the exploration of options.
- The human coach provides context, challenges assumptions, checks whether information is reliable and helps the student turn reflection into action.
AI supports the guidance process. It does not replace the student’s own thinking or the relationship with a teacher, mentor or career professional.
What did the project find?
The methodology was tested in different vocational education settings. The documented testing involved 31 unique students in Lithuania and 20 students in Serbia, meeting the
project target of at least 50 students. A separate Serbian survey involved 35 teachers.
The evaluations produced positive indications that AI can help students structure their thoughts, reflect more purposefully and explore career options. The project also identified
several important conditions:
- students need clear and concrete tasks;
- teachers and mentors remain essential;
- AI-generated information must be checked;
- students should explain conclusions in their own words;
- some students need additional help with language, prompting or interpreting AI responses;
- sensitive personal information should not be entered into AI tools.
AI should therefore be used as a reflection and preparation tool, not as an autonomous career adviser.
What is included in the toolkit?
The final AI-GUIDE Toolkit contains four connected components
- Start Here
A short introduction explaining the purpose of AI-GUIDE, the different parts of the toolkit and the roles of the student, AI and the human coach. - Getting Started with AI
A 45–60-minute introduction for teachers and mentors. It covers the basics of generative AI, prompting, privacy, verification and responsible use. - Working with AI-GUIDE
A practical guide for integrating AI into an existing guidance process. It includes:
● a recurring guidance cycle;
● example prompts;
● goal-setting and reflection worksheets;
● a mid-cycle check-in;
● an end-of-cycle review;
● career exploration activities;
● a quick-reference card for teachers and mentors. - ProCoach
ProCoach is an optional digital study and career coach. Students can use it between
guidance meetings to reflect, explore questions and prepare next steps.
Open AI-GUIDE ProCoach
ProCoach supports the same methodology as the toolkit. It does not replace the human
guidance conversation.
How can schools start?
Schools do not need to introduce a new subject or programme. AI-GUIDE can be connected to existing mentoring, study coaching, career guidance or workplace-learning activities.
A school can begin with one student group and one guidance period. Before starting, the team should agree on:
- which AI tools students may use;
- when AI-supported reflection takes place;
- what students record and share;
- how teachers check important information;
- which students may need extra support.
After the first cycle, the team can review what students used, where the prompts helped and what teachers or mentors need to adjust.
Explore and share AI-GUIDE
The AI-GUIDE materials are intended for vocational schools, teachers, mentors, career advisers and other professionals supporting students with learning and career decisions.
We invite school leaders to explore the toolkit, share it with their teams and consider a small first implementation within their existing guidance programme.
AI-GUIDE – Smart Career Guidance with Responsible AI
Co-funded by the European Union. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union.