Legal Regulation of the Application of Formative Assessment and the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Schools in Lithuania: Insights from Thematic Analysis

Abstract

The article analyses the legal regulation of the application of formative assessment and the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in general education schools in Lithuania. The study was conducted by using document analysis and thematic framework analysis. The sample consisted of currently valid legal acts adopted by state authorities regulating the implementation of formative assessment in general education schools (n = 11) and the use of AI in the education sector (n = 4). The findings indicate that formative assessment is established in legal acts as a continuous, learning-oriented form of assessment grounded in teacher–student interaction, feedback, and the monitoring of individual student progress; however, its regulation lacks full coherence. The use of AI in general education schools is regulated in a fragmented manner, with a lack of clear definitions, implementation guidelines, and principles explicitly linked to formative assessment. It is concluded in this paper that while the existing legal framework provides conditions which are conducive to formative assessment, it insufficiently addresses the challenges posed by the integration of AI in the educational process, thus necessitating targeted improvement of the body of legal regulation.