Every January, the ed-tech world turns its eyes to London for the BETT conference. It’s widely considered the “CES for Education.” As it has for several years now, Google dropped a bunch of 2026 Google Classroom updates, as well as a long list of new features for other Google products.

The official blog post is available here and you can scan through this very dense PDF with all of the latest updates. However, my suggestion would be to read through this post to get quick summaries on the features and updates that will matter most to classroom teachers!

Here is a summary of the big updates coming to your classroom in 2026. Most of these new features are already available, or will be available later this spring!

Big News: Gemini for Workspace is moving to EDU Plus!

This is probably the biggest headline for schools. Previously, Gemini for Workspace (Google’s AI assistant in Docs, Slides, Drive, etc.) required the Google AI Pro licenses ($20/user/month). 

Google announced that these premium AI features are moving “downstream” into free and lower-cost licenses. Here’s what we know so far:

• EDU Plus schools will  get the integrated Gemini side panel in your favorite apps starting in February 2026. Students will receive access in March, after IT admins have time to implement new admin console controls for these updates. 
• Gemini for Gmail: Good news for everyone—Gemini for Gmail will soon be available to all users, regardless of your license type. This feature will help you summarize long email threads and reply to messages using the power of Gemini.

This is an important announcement for another reason; Google is suggesting that as it is able to optimize and scale its AI models, premium features will gradually move “downstream” toward free and consumer accounts. This is good news for everyone and will result in greater feature parity for all Google Workspace customers.

Related Post: What workspace edition do I have?

2026 Google Classroom Updates

Google Classroom is getting some pretty significant, and cool, updates in 2026:

Audio & Video Instructions: Finally! Google classroom is getting a native multimedia recorder which will allow teachers and students to record audio and video directions directly inside Google Classroom. No more needing third-party extensions just to leave a voice note for your students. (Requires EDU Plus or Teaching & Learning).

Audio Lessons: Google is integrating the viral “Audio Overview” feature from NotebookLM directly into Classroom. You can turn your text-based resources into an engaging audio conversation between a “teacher” and “student.” Even cooler? You can export the transcript of that conversation into a slide presentation or document. This feature is available to everyone, click here to try it out!

Suggested Feedback: Grading essays? Gemini can now suggest feedback based on your own notes. You identify the areas for observation, and AI drafts the comment for you to review and personalize. This feature will require an EDU Plus or Teaching & Learning license. 

New Home Page: The main Classroom dashboard is getting a “glow up” to provide better “at-a-glance” information for teachers, students, and admins. Moving forward, the Classroom home screen will look slightly different depending on your role. 

This is a nice update that should surface more helpful information for teachers and students who are currently working off of the same “one size fits all” dashboard.

These 2026 Google Classroom updates will have an impact on classroom instruction this year. I’m excited to get my hands on some of these new features and try them out!

New Ways to Use Gemini

Google is making Gemini “smarter” by connecting it to the tools you use every day. These features will be available for all EDU customers. 

Related Post: Google Gemini for Teachers

Chat with Classroom: You (and your students) can now @Classroom inside a Gemini chat. Students can ask, “When is my essay due?” and teachers can ask, “List all students who haven’t turned in the research report.”

This 2026 Google Classroom update is a tremendous addition to Gemini. Teachers can now use Gemini to get actionable insights from Classroom data and sift through ever increasing amounts of student information.

NotebookLM Connection: You can now select NotebookLM as a source in Gemini, letting you chat with your curated notebooks without leaving the main Gemini interface.

SAT Prep: Google has partnered with The Princeton Review to generate full-length SAT practice tests within Gemini at no extra charge.

Student Study Tools: A new suite of student-focused tools allows learners to generate practice quizzes, flashcards, and study guides from their class material. This feature is being targeted toward higher education students, although it will be available to all EDU domains. 

Automation & “Power User” Tools

For the tech coaches and efficiency lovers out there, these updates are for you.

Google Workspace Studio: This is a new tool for building AI-powered agents to automate daily tasks. You can use Workspace Studio to create a “flow” that will send an email response based on the content of an incoming message or notify you via chat when a user fills out a form. Workspace Studio is integrated into many tools including Gmail, Drive, and Chat.

Workspace Studio is available to all EDU customers, however access to certain applications may require and Google AI Pro subscription. You can explore Workspace Studio by visiting studio.workspace.google.com.

Chromebook Updates

Screen Sharing for Class Tools: Teachers using Class Tools (requires EDU Plus + Teacher Chromebooks) can now share a specific student’s screen to the front-of-room display via the teacher’s computer. It’s a great way to showcase exemplary work without wrestling with HDMI cables.

Universal Annotations: I’m really excited about this update! If you have a touchscreen Chromebook, you can now draw and annotate anywhere at any time. This is huge for teachers casting their screen to the board—you can call out map features or solve math problems over any website or app.

Gemini in Chrome: This feature has been available for Mac and PC devices for several months, but is finally coming to ChromeOS as well. Teachers on Chromebook Plus devices will find a selection of new AI tools that will summarize information, organize your tabs, and get answers from Gemini, from whatever page you are viewing.

Don’t let these changes stress you out!

Constant updates can be overwhelming! You don’t need to use every new feature tomorrow. Pick one—maybe the audio recording in Classroom or the new annotations—and try it out.

Let me be your guide to summarize and clarify what these changes mean for you. Each month I send out the Google EDU Update, a monthly email newsletter with the latest buzz around Google Workspace and Chromebooks.