How to organise an FDP on generative AI: a planning guide for colleges
A step-by-step guide for colleges planning a faculty development programme (FDP) on generative AI: format, a sample agenda, lab setup, certificates and the report.
By the AbilityEx team · · 4 min read
Generative AI has become a common FDP topic in Indian colleges, and for good reason. Students already use AI tools every day, and teachers need to know how to teach with them, set assessments that stay fair, and use them in their own academic work.
This guide walks a coordinator through planning one: what it should achieve, which format to choose, a sample agenda, the lab, and the certificates and report at the end.
What an FDP on generative AI should achieve
Agree the outcomes before anything else. By the end, every participant should be able to:
- explain in plain words how AI models work, and where they fail;
- use AI to prepare teaching material, examples and question banks, and check the results;
- redesign at least one assignment so it stays fair when students use AI;
- use AI responsibly in research and writing, with clear disclosure;
- show something they built during the programme, and a plan to use it next semester.
If a session doesn't serve one of these outcomes, cut it. A shorter programme that faculty use beats a longer one they forget.
Choose the format
| Typical length | Best for | |
|---|---|---|
| One-day workshop | 1 day | A first, hands-on introduction for a whole department |
| Three-day programme | 3 days | Practice across teaching and assessment |
| Five-day FDP | 5 days (one week) | Depth: teaching, assessment, research and a capstone |
| Online series | Sessions over several weeks | Timetables that can't spare whole days |
Whatever the length, keep at least half of every day hands-on. Faculty learn AI by using it on their own subjects, not by watching slides.
Plan the basics
- Set the audience: one department or several, and how much AI experience they have. Mixed groups work if advanced participants get stretch tasks.
- Fix the dates: plan around exams, admissions and placement season, and confirm the timetable with heads of department early.
- Get approvals and a budget: the principal or director, the IQAC and your finance office, as your college requires.
- Choose resource persons: people who use AI in real work, alongside faculty who can connect it to your curriculum.
- Decide on campus or online: hands-on work is easiest on campus; online makes it simpler to include other colleges.
A sample five-day agenda
| Focus | Hands-on task | |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Foundations: how AI models work, their limits and the tools available | Compare answers to one question across several tools |
| Day 2 | AI for teaching: lesson plans, examples and question banks | Build the material for one unit you teach |
| Day 3 | Assessment and academic integrity: assignment design, rubrics and disclosure | Redesign one assignment for a world with AI |
| Day 4 | AI for research: finding and reading papers, writing support and ethics | Run a literature scan on your own topic |
| Day 5 | Building with AI: simple assistants and automations, then capstones | Present a capstone and collect feedback |
For a three-day programme, merge days 1 and 2 and drop the research day. For one day, keep foundations, one teaching task and the assessment redesign.
Prepare the lab and accounts
- A laptop per participant, or per pair, with a charger point nearby.
- Stable internet: test the bandwidth with the whole room online before day one.
- Accounts in advance: ask participants to sign up for the AI tools you'll use before the first session. It saves the first hour.
- A shared folder for slides, prompts and the work participants create.
Certificates, feedback and the report
Plan the paperwork on day one, not after the last session:
- Attendance for every session, on paper or online.
- A feedback form on the last day, with space for what participants will use next semester.
- Photos of the hands-on sessions and the capstone presentations.
- The report: objectives, schedule, resource persons, participants, outcomes and a feedback summary, for your IQAC and accreditation records.
Set the certificate rule in advance
Announce it on day one: for example, a minimum attendance and a submitted capstone. It keeps the room full until the end.
Mistakes to avoid
- Lectures without practice. If participants don't use the tools in the room, few will use them afterwards.
- Teaching one tool. Tools change every few months; teach how to judge them.
- Skipping assessment. It's the question faculty worry about most. Give it a full session.
- Rooms that are too big. In our experience, hands-on sessions on campus work best with 16 to 40 participants per room.
- No follow-up. Book a short check-in a month later to see what faculty are using.
Run it with AbilityEx
We run FDPs and student AI workshops for colleges, on campus or live online. Every session is hands-on, built around your curriculum, and every participant gets a certificate of participation. Share your plan and we send a written agenda, available dates and pricing within one business day.
For students who want to go further after a workshop, the AI Mastery course is a 12-week live programme, and the ₹99 AI webinar is an easy first step.