Reimagining pedagogy for the GenAI era: Frameworks, challenges and institutional strategies

While higher education institutions have updated their policies and issued guidelines to support ethical use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), translating these into effective classroom practices remains a significant challenge. This study explores how educators in Australian higher education are taking GenAI into their teaching to support students learning and foster critical thinking. The study draws on theoretical perspectives from critical digital pedagogy, AI Digital literacy and constructivist learning theory aligning it to Bloom’s taxonomy. Through two in-depth case studies, the paper presents examples of how GenAI is being meaningfully embedded into teaching activities, reflective exercises and student-driven inquiry. The findings highlight variability in student readiness, the cognitive demands of critically engaging with GenAI and the importance of scaffolded, iterative approaches. Educators reported enthusiasm and strain in managing GenAI integration, noting the importance of explicit instruction, reflective practice and peer learning. The study offers a practical framework for embedding GenAI in learning environments and contributes to a growing body of knowledge on how educators can promote ethical GenAI literacy and uphold academic integrity through thoughtfully designed pedagogical strategies. While situated in the Australian higher education context, the study’s insights offer transferable strategies for fostering ethical and critical engagement with GenAI. Implications for practice or policy: Educators can foster GenAI literacy by embedding scaffolded, critical reflection tasks on GenAI use into classroom practices. Educators should standardise GenAI usage templates across units to promote transparency and academic integrity. Educators could improve assessment authenticity by integrating GenAI-assisted stages that culminate in human-led critical evaluation. Administrators should support cross-functional collaboration to embed GenAI literacy into curricula, staff training and student support systems.