NCERT constitutes dedicated team to develop Artificial Intelligence textbooks for Classes 11 and 12: What will students really learn?

Artificial intelligence is no longer staying in oblivion or in the dictionaries of engineers and researchers. It is steadily becoming a part of the everyday lexicon of Indian classrooms. From animated storytelling projects in middle school to structured syllabi at the senior secondary level, the education system is recalibrating what it believes students must know to navigate an increasingly algorithm-driven world. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has now taken a consequential step by dedicating a textbook development team to design syllabi and textbooks on artificial intelligence for Classes 11 and 12. The move was confirmed by the Ministry of Education in Parliament, signalling that AI education is no longer being treated as an optional enrichment but as a structured academic discipline, as reported by ANI.






“As a follow-up to the NEP 2020 and National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023, the National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT) has constituted a Textbook Development Team to develop syllabi and textbooks of Artificial Intelligence for Grades 11 and 12. NCERT has also included a project on Animation and Games in the vocational education textbook for Grade 6. This project includes the use of AI tools,” the Ministry of Education said, according to ANI.

Why introduce AI so early?

The government has made its roadmap clear. Artificial Intelligence will be introduced in all schools from Class 3 onwards, beginning in the 2026–27 academic session, in alignment with NEP 2020 and NCF-SE 2023. The logic is rooted in the belief that computational thinking is no longer a specialised skill but a form of literacy.

The question that comes to the forefront is: Are schools teaching students to comprehend AI ot training them to adapt unquestionably to a future moulded by it? Early exposure can unmistakably demystify technology, but it also risks turning complex systems into black boxes that students learn to use without fully interrupting.

CBSE’s curriculum and the push towards compulsion

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has, in parallel, drawn up an Artificial Intelligence and computational thinking curriculum for students from Classes 3 to 12. Official sources indicate that the framework is designed to ease younger students into basic AI ideas, before steadily moving towards more complex computational concepts in higher classes. From Classes 9 and 10 onwards, Artificial Intelligence will become a compulsory subject.

SOAR and the architecture of future-ready skilling

The Government of India has also launched SOAR (Skilling for AI readiness, a national initiative aligned with NEP 2020, the National Programme on AI (NPAI) Skilling Framework, and the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision.

SOAR targets students from Classes 6 to 12 while simultaneously focusing on building AI literacy among educators. The programme’s stated objective is to embed AI awareness and foundational competencies while ensuring teachers are not left behind in the process.

The curriculum comprises four progressive modules aligned with the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF). For students, three micro-credentials are central:

• AI to be Aware
• AI to Acquire
• AI to Aspire

Each module runs for 15 hours, amounting to a total of 45 hours of AI-focused learning.

The progression is telling. Awareness leads to acquisition, which culminates in aspiration. Is the education system subtly reshaping what students are encouraged to aspire to, and how closely those aspirations align with national economic priorities?

Education, automation and the question of intent

The aggressive integration of AI into school education reflects a larger anxiety about automation, employability, and India’s position in a global digital economy. The underlying assumption is clear: Students who understand AI will be better equipped to coexist with it in the workplace.

But education has never been only about employability. Should schools merely prepare students to work alongside intelligent machines, or should they also equip them to question who designs these systems, who benefits from them, and who is left out?

(With inputs from ANI)Ready to navigate global policies? Secure your overseas future. Get expert guidance now!