‘The country’s future is shaped in classrooms’: NCTE member opens AU programme on generative AI

The future of the country will be shaped in classrooms, said K. Pushpanadham, Coordinator-NEP (2020) and member of the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), Department of Educational Administration, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda.

He was speaking after inaugurating a five-day Faculty Development Programme (FDP) on ‘Generative AI in Education and Training: Integrating Moral Values, Ethics and NEP 2020 for Transforming Teaching-Learning’, organised by the Department of Education, Andhra University, on Monday (September 7, 2026).

Mr. Pushpanadham said the programme would provide a national forum for discussions on reforms in teacher education. He said the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 had been introduced after nearly three-and-a-half decades and would yield results only when it was implemented in classrooms.

Several committees and commissions had been constituted to understand the country’s diversity and address its challenges, he said. NEP 2020 was crucial for bringing about systemic change in education. Teachers, teacher education, curriculum, and governance and leadership in schools could bring about change in education and development, he said. He added that the national goal of ‘Viksit Bharat’ was linked to NEP 2020.

Andhra University Vice-Chancellor G.P. Raja Sekhar said artificial intelligence (AI) could be highly effective in solving complex problems and stressed the need to make modern technologies part of the curriculum. He said the FDP was distinctive as it was not confined to a particular field and called for greater interaction with experts and emphasis on practical sessions.

M.T.V. Nagaraju, head of the Department of Education, Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Amarkantak, said the AU was the first university to organise such a training programme on generative AI. He said the FDP would help participants gain a better understanding of generative AI and adapt the curriculum to the changing technological environment.

FDP convener T. Sharon Raju said guiding educators and students to use AI intelligently and responsibly was crucial to building a knowledge-based society. He said the programme covered multidisciplinary learning, skill development, creativity and meaningful integration of technology, in line with the ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’ vision.

Former IIIT Agartala director P.S. Avadhani called for greater engagement with technology and expressed the hope that India would emerge as a leader in AI technology. He said participation of faculty members in such programmes would help add value to the future generation.