Contral for Classrooms
Teach students to understand the code AI writes.
Your students already use AI to write code. Contral is an AI coding assistant that teaches: it explains every change, walks through edits from other AI tools, and asks students to explain the code back.
Verified educators get free classroom access.
In short
Contral for Classrooms gives verified CS instructors, TAs, student clubs, bootcamps and libraries free access to Contral, an AI coding assistant with a Java curriculum (Learn mode), explain-it-back comprehension checks (Defense mode) and teaching cards that explain AI-written changes. Apply and we'll reply within a few business days.
The problem
Students submit AI code they can't explain
AI made writing code cheap. Understanding it is still the skill your course is there to teach.
It runs, so it gets submitted
AI assistants produce working code in seconds. A student can hand in a correct solution without being able to say what a single line does.
Grading output misses understanding
Autograders check that the program works, not that the student knows why. The gap shows up later, in exams, code reviews and interviews.
Bans are hard to enforce
AI help is built into the editors students already use. Teaching them to read and question AI output lasts longer than a ban.
How Contral helps in class
Build with AI, then prove you understand it
Learn mode
A structured Java curriculum inside the editor
Four categories (13 Basics, 8 Intermediate, 13 Advanced and 17 Data Structures topics), each ending in a Mega Exam. Every topic runs Theory, Observe, Do, Debug, Explain and a Boss challenge, and Contral checks the work by compiling and running code, running tests and asking questions. Java is the only Learn mode language today.
Read the docs: Learn modeDefense mode
A comprehension check on code students didn't write by hand
Defense mode is about proving understanding instead of accepting code. Students describe code in their own words in Explain steps, take Boss challenges and Mega Exams, get AI feedback with /checkpoint, and answer quick quizzes and Socratic questions on teaching cards.
Read the docs: Defense modeTeaching cards
Every AI change comes with an explanation
When Contral's Build agent edits a file, each change gets a teaching card: what it does, why it's written that way and a line-by-line walkthrough. Contral also explains edits made by other agents, including GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Claude Code, Codex CLI and Windsurf.
Read the docs: Teaching cardsReview before it lands
Students stay in control of their files
Contral never writes to files silently. Proposed edits appear as a review card that students accept or skip block by block, and Contral asks before it runs any terminal command.
Read the docs: Review before it landsWhere students code
VS Code and the editors built on it
The Contral extension runs in VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Antigravity, Kilo Code and VSCodium. Contral IDE, a desktop editor with Contral built in, is in public beta for macOS on Apple Silicon.
Read the docs: Where students codeFree plan
Every student can start without a card
Contral has a free plan that needs no card, including Fast mode, daily code explanations and the Basics topics of the Java curriculum.
Read the docs: Free plan
In practice
Ways to use Contral with your students
Suggestions from how Contral is designed to be used. Adapt them to your course policy on AI.
Explain it back before you submit
Ask students to answer the teaching card's quiz for each AI change, then summarize the change in one sentence in their submission.
Office-hours code defense
A student selects code they wrote with AI, runs Contral: Explain selection, reads it, then explains the code to you without the card.
Java fundamentals alongside the course
Assign the Learn mode topics that match the week's material. Students practise in real files in their own workspace, not a browser sandbox.
Club workshops
Run a “defend your code” session: members build something with AI, then pair up and quiz each other on what they shipped.
Who it's for
For anyone teaching people to code
Instructors and lecturers
For courses where AI help is allowed and you want to check understanding, not just output.
Teaching assistants
Point students to teaching cards and Explain selection in labs and office hours.
Student clubs
ACM chapters, Google Developer Groups on Campus (formerly GDSC) and coding clubs running workshops and hack nights.
Bootcamps
An assistant that teaches while learners build their portfolio projects.
University libraries
A tool to list in programming and AI research guides for students learning to code with AI.
The offer
Free classroom access for verified educators
Apply and we'll set up your class. We review every application and reply within a few business days.
Apply
Tell us about your course, club or program. It takes about two minutes.
We verify
We check that you teach or run a program. An institutional email helps us move faster.
We set up your class
We review every application and reply within a few business days with next steps.
Nothing is required in return. If Contral helps your students, a link from your course page, syllabus or library guide helps other educators find it.
Questions first? Email contact@contral.ai.
For your syllabus
Add Contral to your course resources
Copy a short description and a link for your syllabus, course website, LibGuide or club page.
Description
Contral (https://contral.ai/educators) is an AI coding assistant that teaches while you code. It explains the changes AI makes to your code, including edits from other AI tools, includes a structured Java curriculum with checkpoints and exams, and asks you to explain code back so you understand what you submit. It works in VS Code, Cursor and Windsurf, and has a free plan.
HTML link
<a href="https://contral.ai/educators">Contral — AI coding assistant that teaches</a>
Markdown link
[Contral — AI coding assistant that teaches](https://contral.ai/educators)
Listed Contral on a course or library page? Tell us at contact@contral.ai and we'll say thanks.
FAQ
Questions from educators
- Who qualifies for free classroom access?
- Instructors, lecturers, teaching assistants, student club leads, bootcamp staff and librarians at schools, universities and training programs. We review every application and reply within a few business days.
- Do I need a .edu email address to apply?
- No. An institutional address such as .edu or .ac helps us verify you faster, but you can apply with any work email and we'll follow up if we need more details.
- What do students get?
- Contral's Build, Learn and Defense modes in the extension for VS Code-based editors and in the desktop IDE. We confirm the exact setup for your class when we reply to your application.
- Which programming languages does Contral teach?
- Learn mode's structured curriculum currently covers Java, from basics through data structures. Build mode and its teaching cards work with whatever language a project uses, so students in Python, JavaScript or other courses still get explanations of AI-written changes.
- Does Contral integrate with Canvas, Moodle or Blackboard?
- Not today. Students install the Contral extension or the desktop IDE and sign in with their own Contral account.
- Can I see my students' progress?
- Learn mode progress is saved on each student's own computer. Contral's Teams plan includes an admin dashboard and team progress tracking; if you need that, tell us in your application.
- Does Contral store students' code?
- Contral doesn't store source code on its servers. To answer a request, it sends the prompt and the relevant code context to an AI model provider, and Contral's Privacy Policy says that data isn't used for training. See the Privacy Policy at contral.ai/privacy for details.
- Won't an AI assistant make it easier to cheat?
- Whether AI help is allowed on an assignment is your call. Contral is built around understanding: it explains each change and asks students to explain code back, so it fits courses that allow AI and want students to understand what they submit.
- Can I link to Contral from my course page or library guide?
- Yes, please. The “Add Contral to your course resources” box on this page has a ready-to-paste description and link.