In a groundbreaking move that could reshape educational assessment across India, the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology Delhi (IIIT-Delhi) has officially embraced Artificial Intelligence tools like ChatGPT in examinations and assignments. This radical overhaul of the evaluation system marks a significant departure from traditional academic practices and acknowledges the irreversible integration of AI in modern learning.
Transparency-First Approach to AI Integration
The institute is currently piloting this innovative model in select departments, requiring students to submit not just their answers but also the specific prompts they used to generate AI responses. This transparency mechanism ensures that educators can evaluate the entire thought process behind the final submission. IIIT-Delhi director Ranjan Bose emphasized that the decision reflects the institute's progressive stance toward technological advancement rather than resistance.
"Students are already using AI tools in some form. The question is not whether to allow them, but how to help students use them responsibly and creatively," Bose stated. He further explained that originality will now lie in how students frame and refine prompts to obtain meaningful outputs, shifting the focus from content generation to critical interaction with AI systems.
New Assessment Model: Beyond Rote Learning
Under the proposed framework, some tests may be conducted as take-home assessments, while others could allow students to access AI tools on their laptops during supervised on-campus exams. This builds upon the institute's existing practice of conducting open-book exams in certain courses, where evaluation focuses on understanding rather than factual recall.
Faculty members involved in the pilot program revealed that evaluation will prioritize the quality of prompts, reasoning capabilities, and analytical skills rather than memory-based responses. A senior professor involved in early trials explained: "Instead of banning AI, we are asking students to show how they used it. Submitting prompts makes their process visible and helps us evaluate intent and reasoning, not just the final output."
Comprehensive Framework for Responsible AI Use
The institute has established multiple safeguards to ensure academic integrity amidst this technological integration. All students must attend compulsory sessions each semester covering the ethical and academic use of AI tools. Additionally, the institute has introduced mandatory disclosure requirements for AI use in thesis and research work, with students signing declarations taking responsibility for academic honesty and transparency.
Faculty development is equally crucial to this transformation. Bose confirmed that teachers will undergo specialized training to design questions that test higher-order thinking and cannot be easily solved by AI tools alone. "This model builds on our open-book exam principle. It will require teachers to frame questions that test comprehension and judgement, not just the ability to generate an answer," he added.
Student Response and Institutional Impact
Students have welcomed this forward-thinking approach, noting that it aligns with their current learning practices. Tanisha Mittal, a first-year B.Tech student, shared: "We already use AI tools to check concepts or summarise readings. Bringing it into the exam system openly removes the stigma and helps us learn responsible use."
Aryan Kumar, another first-year B.Tech student, highlighted the potential impact on learning methodologies: "If we're evaluated on how we ask questions to AI and interpret its responses, it tests understanding far better than memorisation."
With approximately 3,000 students across 32 programmes, IIIT-Delhi is expected to implement the new model across all departments in the coming months. Officials indicated that the framework will be refined based on feedback from ongoing trials before full-scale implementation. The institute is also developing a uniform assessment structure for undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programmes.
This pioneering initiative positions IIIT-Delhi at the forefront of educational innovation in India's capital, as institutions worldwide grapple with the challenges and opportunities presented by generative AI. While many universities impose restrictions on AI tools, IIIT-Delhi's structured inclusion approach with mandatory transparency requirements offers a potential blueprint for the future of education in the AI era.
