Danish teenagers will have to make an oral defence of their written essays to combat AI cheating, the government announced on Thursday. Pupils aged 16 to 19 at upper secondary school, known as gymnasiet, will also be encouraged to complete written assignments at school under controlled conditions, including monitoring of their computer screens, rather than at home.
The measures come into immediate effect as pupils prepare to return to school next week after the summer break, after Magnus Heunicke, the country’s education minister, demanded urgent action. The education ministry said AI had posed a growing challenge to teaching and exams, and the new rules are intended to establish clearer guidelines for when pupils are not permitted to use it.
“Unfortunately, we have a problem with AI cheating in upper secondary schools,” he said. “Action is needed now.”
The government is also preparing a comprehensive national strategy for AI use in all schools and the wider education sector. Heunicke said he would speak to schools, teachers and students to “ensure that AI does not undermine students’ competencies, professionalism and, not least, the ability to think for themselves”.
How will oral defences work?
The first measure to be introduced is the oral defence of exam assignments written at home. About 9,000 upper secondary school students each year write a big assignment, known as større skriftlige opgave or SSO, and they will now have to defend it orally. The ministry said it would speak to schools about the best way to do this.
What will change in exams and teaching?
Upper secondary schools will also be required to use monitoring tools to oversee how computers are being used for written exams. They are required to install firewalls to filter what is available on the school network during exams and teaching.
The third measure is a plea to schools to encourage pupils to do more of their written assignments at school under controlled conditions, to “follow the students’ work process, provide relevant feedback and create a more accurate basis for assessment”.
The ready availability of AI tools is upending education around the world for teachers and pupils, leaving governments scrambling to assess if and how they should intervene.
In neighbouring Sweden, a study found that the number of students suspended or warned for unauthorised AI use rose by 688% between 2023 and 2025. The government has commissioned a review into how schools are tackling AI cheating, which will report back in April.
Announcing the review, Lotta Edholm, the Swedish minister for upper secondary school, said in January:
“There is no reason to turn a blind eye to cheating students. Cheating is completely unacceptable regardless of what form. It risks affecting grades that should reflect students’ knowledge and in the long term, students are not actually learning what they should.”
What is the wider context?
The Danish measures come as governments across Europe and beyond grapple with how to respond to AI in education. The ministry said the aim was not only to curb cheating, but also to give schools clearer rules on when AI can and cannot be used.
That challenge is reflected in Sweden, where the rise in AI-related disciplinary action has prompted a formal review. Danish officials are now moving ahead with tighter rules as the new school year begins, signalling that AI use in essays and exams will be placed under closer supervision.
Key Facts
- Danish upper secondary students aged 16 to 19 will have to orally defend home-written essays.
- About 9,000 students a year write the større skriftlige opgave, or SSO.
- Schools will use monitoring tools and firewalls during exams and teaching.
- Students will be encouraged to do more written work at school under controlled conditions.
- Sweden reported a 688% rise in students suspended or warned for unauthorised AI use between 2023 and 2025.
