Future of Teachers in the Age of Machines
Machines may help us learn faster, but it is teachers who help us grow.
Gowher Bhat
A student sits at a desk late in the evening, turning the pages of a textbook and trying to understand a lesson. The more the student reads, the more confusing it seems. Until a few years ago, the only option might have been to wait until morning and ask the teacher for help. Today, artificial intelligence can offer an explanation within seconds. It can answer questions, solve problems and provide information at any hour of the day.
This quiet change is reshaping education. Learning is no longer limited to school hours or the four walls of a classroom. Students can explore subjects, seek explanations and practise their skills through digital tools. But as machines become increasingly capable of performing tasks once associated with teachers, an important question arises: what place will teachers have in the classrooms of tomorrow?
Most of us can remember a teacher who made a difference in our lives. Perhaps it was someone who made a difficult subject interesting, encouraged us after a disappointing result or recognised an ability we had not discovered ourselves. We may have forgotten many lessons from our school days, but we often remember the people who taught them. Their influence went beyond textbooks and examinations. They helped us gain confidence and see possibilities we might otherwise have overlooked.
Artificial intelligence is bringing new possibilities into education. It can explain topics, prepare exercises, check written work and offer different ways of approaching a problem. A student who struggles with a lesson can return to it several times without feeling embarrassed about asking the same question. Another, eager to learn more, can explore subjects beyond the school syllabus. Teachers can also use these tools to prepare lessons and organise classroom activities.
For students who need extra practice, this can be particularly helpful. They no longer have to remain confused simply because the school day has ended. Learning can continue at home, in a library or wherever they have access to a digital device. Technology is making education more flexible, although its benefits depend on whether students can access it.
Yet education is not simply about finding the right answer. It is also about learning how to ask the right questions. A machine may solve a mathematical problem or produce an essay, but students must understand the reasoning behind the answer. If they begin copying whatever appears on a screen, they may complete their assignments without developing their own ideas. The real value of education lies not in how quickly information can be collected, but in the ability to examine it, understand it and use it wisely.
A teacher brings something different to this process: an understanding of the child behind the schoolwork.
No two students learn in exactly the same way. One may understand a lesson immediately, while another needs it explained several times. Some raise their hands without hesitation; others remain silent because they fear giving a wrong answer. A good teacher recognises these differences and knows when to slow down, ask another question or offer encouragement.
A machine may point out that a child has made a mistake. A teacher can look beyond that mistake and try to understand its cause. The student may not have understood the lesson, may lack confidence or may be facing difficulties outside the classroom. Recognising such problems requires attention, patience and experience.
This human role in education is not simply an argument based on tradition or nostalgia. A 2023 report by the US Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology, titled Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Teaching and Learning: Insights and Recommendations, called for a human-centred approach to the use of AI in education. It emphasised the importance of involving teachers and other educators in decisions about how these technologies are introduced and used.
A similar understanding can be found in India’s National Education Policy 2020, published by the Ministry of Education, Government of India. It recognises the growing role of technology in education while emphasising teacher training and the need to address unequal access to digital resources. Introducing new tools into schools is not enough. Teachers need the knowledge and confidence to use them effectively, while students must learn to examine the information they receive rather than accept it blindly.
However, the promise of digital education comes with a challenge that cannot be ignored. Not every child has a computer, a smartphone or a reliable internet connection. For some students, online learning is only a click away. For others, even getting a stable connection can be difficult.
The scale of this problem became clear during the COVID-19 pandemic. UNESCO’s Global Education Monitoring Report 2023: Technology in Education – A Tool on Whose Terms? found that distance learning failed to reach at least 500 million students worldwide during school closures. This represented 31 per cent of students globally. Of the children who could not be reached, 72 per cent came from the poorest households, while 70 per cent lived in rural areas. These figures remind us that access to technology remains far from equal.
This matters in Jammu and Kashmir, too. While some students enjoy access to digital facilities, children in remote areas may face poor connectivity, power cuts and financial difficulties. If education increasingly depends on technology, these differences could leave many students further behind. Digital learning must therefore go hand in hand with better internet access, affordable devices and support for schools in underserved areas. A child’s educational opportunities should not depend on where they live or what their family can afford.
Perhaps, then, the question is not whether machines will replace teachers, but how we can use technology without losing sight of what education is meant to achieve. AI can assist with practice, explanations and routine tasks. Used thoughtfully, it can give teachers more time to focus on classroom discussions, individual attention and activities that develop creativity and critical thinking.
Education must prepare young people for more than examinations and careers. It should help them become responsible, thoughtful and compassionate individuals. These qualities develop through experience, relationships and the example set by the people around them. Technology can provide information, but the values children carry into the world are shaped by much more than what they see on a screen.
The classrooms of tomorrow may look very different from those of today. Digital tools may become a regular part of lessons, and teachers will need to keep learning as new methods emerge. But the purpose of education should remain unchanged: to help every child discover their abilities and find their place in the world.
Years from now, a student may forget the digital platform used in a classroom or the device that helped explain a lesson. But that student may still remember the teacher who stayed behind to offer help, encouraged them after failure or made them believe they could achieve something worthwhile.
Machines may make information easier to find and learning more flexible. But helping a child find confidence, purpose and direction will remain one of the most meaningful responsibilities of a teacher.
Machines may help us learn faster, but it is teachers who help us grow.
(STRAIGHT TALK COMMUNICATIONS EXCLUSIVE.)
