The Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board has given final approval to teach Artificial Intelligence to students up to class five, with dedicated AI labs set to be established in all primary schools across the province. According to officials, the new curriculum has now cleared all required regulatory approvals and is ready for rollout, with implementation set to begin from the 2027-28 academic session.
Under the approved plan, students from Grade 1 through Grade 5 will study Artificial Intelligence as a standalone, compulsory subject, with a dedicated weekly class period allocated for it in the same manner as other core subjects such as mathematics or science. Officials confirmed that AI will not be treated as an optional activity or supplementary exercise but will be fully integrated into the formal examination system, meaning students will be required to pass the subject in order to progress to the next grade, similar to existing core subjects on the primary syllabus.
Education authorities said the initiative is intended to familiarise young children with modern technology from an early age while strengthening their creative, analytical, and problem solving abilities. Officials believe introducing AI concepts at the primary level will help improve students’ overall learning speed and intellectual development, positioning Punjab as the first province in Pakistan to make AI compulsory at such an early stage of schooling. The move builds on groundwork laid earlier this year, when the province’s education department first announced plans to introduce the subject before securing formal approval from the Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board’s Board of Governors.
To support the new subject, primary schools across Punjab will be equipped with dedicated AI labs, giving young students hands-on exposure to basic computing and AI concepts alongside classroom instruction. The scale of the rollout, covering millions of primary school students across the province, represents a significant logistical undertaking, with teacher training expected to be a central part of the preparation process ahead of the 2027-28 launch, given that most current primary school educators have not previously taught AI related content.
The Punjab initiative follows a broader push at the federal level to embed AI and robotics education across Pakistan’s school system, after the federal government formally notified a comprehensive AI and Robotics curriculum spanning Grade 1 through Grade 12 earlier this year, aimed at promoting computational thinking and ethical technology use nationwide. With Punjab now moving to implement compulsory AI education specifically at the primary level, the province is positioning itself as a frontrunner among Pakistan’s provincial education systems in preparing younger students for a technology driven economy, though officials acknowledge that curriculum design, teacher readiness, and lab infrastructure will all need to be finalised well ahead of the 2027-28 academic session for the rollout to proceed smoothly.
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