On a quiet morning at Allama Iqbal Open University in Islamabad, a classroom full of teachers sat facing their laptops instead of chalkboards. Some leaned forward with curiosity, others with hesitation. On the screen in front of them were words that until recently belonged more to technology labs than lecture halls: artificial intelligence, AI tools, digital assistants.
For decades, the tools of teaching in Pakistan rarely changed — chalk, textbooks and handwritten lesson plans. But now a new chapter is quietly unfolding.
The university has launched a three-day faculty training programme titled “Empowering Educators: Integrating AI into Teaching Practices,” an initiative designed to introduce educators to artificial intelligence and explore how it can reshape the way knowledge is delivered in classrooms.
The workshop is being organised by the Directorate of Academic Planning and Course Production in collaboration with the Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia, a regional organisation that promotes the use of technology in education across Asia.
At the inaugural session, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Prof Dr Fazlur Rehman, addressed the gathering of teachers who had come to learn something that, until recently, many associated with science fiction. Artificial intelligence, he said, is no longer a distant possibility. It is already influencing the way students learn, search for information and interact with knowledge.
Joining the session online, CEMCA Director Dr Basheer Hamad reminded participants that technology, like any tool, carries both promise and risk. Artificial intelligence, he noted, can be misused, but when applied responsibly it can dramatically improve the learning process. Tasks that once required hours of preparation — drafting lesson plans, designing quizzes or preparing classroom activities — can now be completed within minutes with the help of AI.
For many teachers in the room, the idea was both exciting and slightly unsettling. Teaching has always been deeply human, built on personal interaction, instinct and experience. Now, algorithms are beginning to share space in that process.
Yet the mood of the workshop suggested curiosity rather than resistance. Over the course of three days, national and international experts are guiding participants through demonstrations of AI tools, discussing ethical use of technology and answering questions about how these systems might fit into everyday teaching.
Director Academic Planning and Course Production Dr Zahid Majeed explained that the aim of the workshop is not to replace traditional teaching but to strengthen it. AI, he said, should be viewed as an assistant that helps educators save time and enhance creativity.
While the initiative at the Islamabad university represents a small but meaningful step, it is part of a broader movement slowly taking shape across Pakistan’s education sector.
Hundreds of kilometres away in Karachi, the Government of Sindh has launched what officials describe as the country’s first AI-based online training programme for schoolteachers. The six-month pilot project aims to train around 3,500 educators from the districts of Dadu, Tando Allahyar, Tharparkar and Umerkot — areas where access to modern educational resources has often been limited.
The programme is being implemented by the School Education and Literacy Department with financial support from UNICEF and technical assistance from Khan Academy Pakistan.
At the centre of the training is an AI assistant known as Khanmigo, a digital tool designed to help teachers plan lessons, generate questions and suggest interactive activities for classrooms. Instead of spending long evenings preparing teaching material, educators can use the AI system to quickly design learning exercises tailored to specific topics.
Officials involved in the programme believe the technology could transform classrooms in remote districts where teachers often struggle with limited resources and heavy workloads.
Sindh Education Minister Sardar Ali Shah described the initiative as an investment in the future of the province’s students. If teachers become comfortable with modern tools, he said, students in rural schools will be able to access education that matches global standards.
For many education experts, the logic behind such programmes is simple. Technology in classrooms will continue to expand, whether teachers are prepared for it or not. Training educators to understand and guide these tools is therefore essential.
Across the world, artificial intelligence is already being used to personalise learning, identify students who need extra support and create more engaging classroom experiences. In Pakistan, however, the transition is still at an early stage, shaped by challenges such as limited internet access, lack of devices and varying levels of digital literacy among teachers.
But change often begins with small steps — a workshop here, a pilot programme there.
Back in Islamabad, as the training session at Allama Iqbal Open University continues, teachers are experimenting with AI tools for the first time. Some are discovering how an algorithm can draft a lesson plan within seconds. Others are exploring how AI can suggest creative classroom activities or generate quizzes based on textbook chapters.
The room occasionally fills with laughter when the technology produces unexpected results. At other moments, it sparks thoughtful debate about how much responsibility should be given to machines in shaping education.
For now, the chalkboard has not disappeared. But sitting beside it, quietly gaining attention, is a new kind of assistant — one made not of chalk or paper, but of code.
And for Pakistan’s teachers, learning how to work alongside that assistant may soon become one of the most important lessons of all.