Take AI help in teaching but stay cautious, experts tell school heads
Times of India | 7 January 2026
Kolkata: A special session on the second day of the 103rd annual conference of the Association of Heads of Anglo-Indian Schools on Tuesday focused on an AI-enabled curriculum to make classroom teaching more interactive and learning more enjoyable, while ensuring that students do not become overly dependent on AI for preparing lessons. The next session focused on awareness of cybercrime and cybersecurity, highlighting that cyberattacks are becoming more automated, scalable, and faster using AI.
Speaking at the La Martiniere School hall, IIT-Kharagpur alumnus and AI expert Rajiv Agarwal said: "AI is our friend, but sometimes it gives wrong answers very confidently. We should take information from AI but not depend on it completely." He spoke on ‘Learning Made Fun & Engaging with an AI-Enabled Curriculum'. He explained how AI was transforming education by creating personalised learning paths for each student, automatically checking homework, and using interactive content to make studying enjoyable.
He said students focus on studies only when learning feels fun, like eating tasty, spicy food. When teachers use jokes and engaging apps to help students build skills, their marks improve automatically. Many students prefer quick solutions, like instant noodles, that do not help in the long run. "Too much dependence on AI means we give away our creativity, critical thinking, and ability to judge right from wrong. AI often gets answers wrong or misses the real context. Humans must always stay in control," he added.
In the next session on awareness of cybercrime and cybersecurity, Pranav Kumar, additional commissioner of police, alerted school heads to be extra careful in protecting sensitive data, as AI is making cyberattacks more automated, scalable, and faster. He urged school heads to have a proper written policy for their schools, widely accepted and clearly defining what should be used and what should not.
He also said that schools should establish clear rules on how digital data and accounts are used, and should place greater emphasis on protecting sensitive information of students, parents, and staff, ensuring operational continuity of school systems and services, and safeguarding financial transactions such as fees, payments, and vendor dealings, while protecting institutional identity and the reputation, credibility, and trust of their schools. In recent times, cyber offences have become increasingly organised.
Kumar said, "The entire landscape is changing every day. So, people should have proper knowledge, and report immediately if they are victims of cyber fraud or cybercrime. Regular training and awareness are most important for institutional aspects. There should be an ERP system and student data should be secured."
With the rise in the number cyberbullying and blackmail cases among minors, reporting remains very low compared to the increase in incidents. These issues can be addressed through regular awareness-building programmes and the implementation of proper policies to curb misuse.