Designing AI Literacy Programs to the DOL Framework
The DOL AI Literacy Framework (TEN 07-25) directs education and training providers, community colleges, online platforms, Registered Apprenticeships, to integrate AI literacy into existing curricula, give learners hands-on AI practice tied to their field, build output-judgment exercises, create pathways from literacy to role-specific skills, and partner with local employers.
Last verified against the DOL source: August 20, 2026. What changed
What TEN 07-25 says to you
Providers get the framework's most design-specific guidance: review existing curricula for integration points; deliver AI literacy "as a standalone module or embed[ded] within existing learning pathways"; give learners hands-on practice "using AI tools to complete tasks relevant to their field of study"; add industry- and role-specific examples; "incorporate exercises that build judgment about AI outputs"; create "clear pathways for learners to progress from foundational literacy to deeper role-specific skills"; and partner with local employers to keep content aligned with regional labor-market needs. The framework acknowledges your actual pain: providers "recognize the need to integrate AI literacy but may be uncertain about what content to teach, how to assess competency, or how to keep pace with rapidly evolving technology."
What it means for you
The framework solves the curriculum-design problem (what to teach) and, via its agility principle, the maintenance problem (how to stay current). What it does not solve is capacity: building and continuously refreshing a 60-checkpoint curriculum in-house is a multi-year commitment. The rational move for most providers is to adopt or license a program already built to the framework and wrap it in your own contextualization, which is exactly what Delivery Principle 2 prescribes.
Your first five moves
(1) map your current AI content against the 12 provisions (the Alignment Checker does this in 12 minutes); (2) decide standalone module vs. embedded pathway per program; (3) add hands-on labs if your current content is lecture-based; (4) build the employer-advisory loop for regional relevance; (5) establish a quarterly content-refresh mechanism (Principle 7) or partner with someone who has one.
The provisions that matter most to you
How GAGE serves you
Institutional licensing: the literacy layer your faculty contextualize, plus an instructor track. Team seats run $89, $69 and $49 a seat by volume, from 10 seats, with a per-cohort evidence report.
GAGE for universitiesQuestions from readers like you
Does the framework prescribe a curriculum?
No, it defines content areas and delivery principles and explicitly preserves provider flexibility: "programs should retain the flexibility to define the specific approach that best drives measurable AI skill development outcomes in their own contexts."
Which provider types does the framework name?
Community colleges, online learning platforms, and Registered Apprenticeship programs, with the TEN also addressed to tribal colleges, CTE directors, and state education agencies.
Score what you have against the framework
Sixty checkpoints, twelve provisions, about twelve minutes, and a dated report you can put in front of whoever asks. Free, and the answers never leave your browser unless you ask for the report by email.
GAGE (Global Academy of Generative-AI Education) is a private education company, not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Labor. DOL does not certify or endorse training programs. Framework summaries are drawn from the public TEN 07-25 document. Read TEN 07-25 on dol.gov. Last verified: August 20, 2026.
Last verified against the DOL source: August 20, 2026. What changed