Education experts have stressed that universities in Pakistan must adopt modern technology while ensuring the responsible, ethical, and effective use of artificial intelligence, so that the quality of higher education improves and academic integrity and educational values remain protected. The remarks were made at a Vice Chancellors’ Roundtable Discussion organised by Allama Iqbal Open University as part of the five day 29th Sustainable Development Goals Conference arranged by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute in Islamabad. The roundtable brought together vice chancellors and heads of universities from across the country, along with educationists and international experts, to discuss how artificial intelligence should be introduced in teaching, research, and administration.
Speakers said artificial intelligence has opened new avenues for the higher education sector, and that universities can raise academic standards, research output, and the learning capacity of students if they use it effectively. They stressed, however, that ethical principles, transparency, accountability, and academic honesty must be given top priority. Participants agreed that the technology should serve as a supporting tool for teachers and students and must not replace human thinking, creativity, or intellectual effort. They also warned that excessive dependence on artificial intelligence could weaken the independent thinking and research abilities of students, and called for universities to prepare clear policies and guidelines that define appropriate and responsible use on campus. Such guidelines would need to address practical questions, including how assignments are assessed, how sources are acknowledged, and how students and faculty disclose the use of automated tools in their work.
The experts described the training of teachers in line with modern requirements, reforms in curriculum, better research facilities, and the promotion of digital skills among students as indispensable. They said building critical thinking, creativity, problem solving ability, and awareness of the ethical use of technology among students is the need of the hour. Allama Iqbal Open University Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Nasir Mahmood said artificial intelligence is already playing an important role in making distance education more effective, since students are being given better academic support through it. He added that responsible and ethical use is essential for protecting academic integrity, creative thinking, and educational values, while still allowing universities to benefit from what the technology offers. The discussion was attended by Sustainable Development Policy Institute Executive Director Dr Abid Qaiyum Suleri, Beaconhouse National University Vice Chancellor Dr Moeed Yusuf, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology Rector Prof Dr Fazal Ahmad Khalid, Dr Aneel Salman of the Islamabad Policy Research Institute, Fatima Jinnah Women University Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Bushra Mirza, University of Sindh Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Fateh Muhammad Mari, Prof Dr Aneela Kamal of Women University Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Prof Dr Mustansar Ali Aznfar of the University of East London, who joined online. The session was moderated by Dr Fareeha Armughan.
The conversation comes as awareness of artificial intelligence in the wider population remains low, with a recent national survey finding that only 15 percent of Pakistanis have used tools such as chatbots, and as the Higher Education Commission has begun training university administrators in applied artificial intelligence. For universities, the message from the roundtable is that adoption and caution have to move together. Institutions that train their teachers, update their curriculum, and publish clear rules on responsible use will be better placed to benefit from the technology, while those that rely on it without safeguards risk weakening the very skills that a university degree is supposed to build.
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