With one of the largest student populations in the world, India is becoming an important testing ground for education reforms that involve technology. Experts pointed to the NIPUN Bharat (National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy) Mission as an example of how strong political commitment can improve learning outcomes.
NIPUN Bharat is a flagship mission launched by the Ministry of Education in July 2021. It is a critical part of India’s National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The core philosophy is simple: for a child to succeed in later grades, they must first “learn to read” so they can later “read to learn.”
The UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report 2023 also highlighted that technology can help improve education but only if it is used carefully and in a way that focuses on people.
The report found that digital learning tools are effective only when teachers receive proper training. It also stressed that the digital divide is not only about access to devices like laptops. Students also need reliable internet access and the skills to use technology safely.
Dr Pia Britto, Global Director of Education at UNICEF believes that technology should always remain a tool to support learning, not the main objective. Real progress should be measured by whether children feel safer and learn better.
“Governments and technology leaders must ensure that AI is designed with children in mind. If this does not happen, an entire generation could struggle in a highly digital world that they had no role in creating,” she said.
Britto noted that many countries have made significant progress in enrolling children in primary schools, but the progress often slows when students reach secondary education. “This issue is especially visible among girls and children from disadvantaged communities,” she said.
According to a UNICEF Digital Learning Report 2024, AI-powered personalised tutoring could reduce school dropout rates by up to 20 percent in some regions. These systems can adjust lessons based on each student’s learning speed and needs.
However, experts say such solutions will work only if AI systems are designed to be inclusive. This means they should support local languages and cultural contexts instead of simply adapting technology created in places like Silicon Valley.
Experts say the future of AI in education will depend on a few important priorities. One of the biggest concerns is safety, especially protecting children from data misuse and biased algorithms. Another priority is ensuring fairness so that schools in poorer areas have access to the same digital tools as well-funded institutions.
Technology should also help strengthen basic skills such as reading and mathematics rather than replace them. Finally, policymakers are increasingly calling for children’s voices to be included when decisions about AI in education are made.
Discussions at the AI Impact Summit showed that global attention is now focused on how countries like India approach AI in education. As AI technology continues to grow rapidly, the debate is moving beyond what machines are capable of doing. Instead, the real question is how these technologies should be used to support and protect the most vulnerable members of society—children.