The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that American K-12 schools will soon have more control over students' access to Google's artificial-intelligence tools -- but only up to a point. Guest columnist Vass Bednar writes classrooms that opt out of AI entirely will also lose the ability to use Google Search. The block isn't tied to a school's IP network, but to the school-managed accounts students sign into. Search and Gemini (the company's AI assistant) will be off by default, and administrators can switch them back on. Search and AI are deeply integrated. Google's strong-arming provoked accusations that the company is exploiting its dominance in search to force AI adoption in classrooms. The tech giant's announcement followed mounting criticism about AI's effects on student learning. Earlier this year, Common Sense Media tested 2,100 citations from Google's AI search. It found that 29 per cent came from low-quality sources -- user-generated sites such as Reddit and YouTube -- and recommended that Google turn its AI Overviews and AI Mode off by default for school and child accounts. Mr. Bednar says AI is becoming a condition of participation in digital life, rather than something we freely choose to accept.