CHITRAL: In the concluding session of a month-long refresher course for university teachers, the academic experts have stressed the need for keeping pace with the changing modes of pedagogy in the contemporary world overshadowed by technology and artificial intelligence.

Held under the Higher Education Commission’s National Academy of Higher Education for the faculty members of the University of Chitral, the training session consisted of nine modules pertaining to different disciplines being taught there.

Vice-Chancellor of Kohat University of Science and Technology Prof Nasiruddin presented the outlook of the training modules, which were designed to keep participants abreast of the newly emerging dimensions of teaching.

He lauded participants for evincing interest in the session and said he felt satisfied that their conceptual understanding about all the modules was clear very much that would ultimately benefit the students in the classrooms facing them.

Chief guest of the session and director of the Professional Development Centre of Aga Khan University based in Chitral Dr Riaz Hussain said the continuous learning of professional education was indispensable as the ever-changing set of things changed with each moment of time.

He asked participants to wholly and solely every part of the lesson to their respective classrooms they learnt during the training session.

Provost of the university Prof Tajuddin Sharar expressed his gratitude to the HEC for arranging the vital training session, which, he said, was highly in demand because it was first of nature for the faculty of the varsity after its inception in 2011.

He expressed the hope that the chain of training sessions for faculty members would go with greater frequency and precision.

The participants offering their reflections over the modules of the training included Masood Anwar (computer science), Rizwana Bilqis (botany), Ziaur Rehman (management sciences), Zahoorul Haq Danish (English) and Basharat Hussain (political science).

They said the session was oriented towards technology integration with special emphasis on use of artificial intelligence in teaching and imparted them ultra-modern assessment techniques and academic progress.

The participants vowed to return to their classrooms with a renewed and modernized knowledge of pedagogy, which, they said, would transmit the knowledge to their pupils with better success and zeal. Certificates were later distributed to participants.

Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2025