Overview
- The Education Ministry launched a new Computational Thinking and Artificial Intelligence curriculum on Wednesday, introducing it across CBSE Classes 3 to 8 for the 2026–27 school year.
- The programme is compulsory for these grades and will expand to Classes 9 and 10 next year, in line with the National Education Policy 2020 and the 2023 school curriculum framework.
- Students in Classes 3 to 5 will learn computational thinking inside math and environmental studies for about 50 hours a year, while Classes 6 to 8 will get 100 hours with advanced CT, AI fundamentals, and project work.
- The package includes teacher and student handbooks, clear assessment rubrics, and digital support on platforms like DIKSHA, with content developed by an expert panel led by IIT Madras’s Karthik Raman and vetted by NCERT.
- Officials urged fast translations into Indian languages, large-scale teacher training, and classroom upgrades, marking a shift from CBSE’s earlier 15-hour AI module to a full, structured programme.