Teacher agency and AI competency frameworks in higher education:UNESCO insights

The accelerating integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into education necessitates a critical re-examination of teacher competencies, professional agency, and ethical governance frameworks. This article synthesises insights from the UNESCO online discussion on AI in education, focusing on the intersection between competency-based frameworks, teacher autonomy, and pedagogical transformation. Drawing upon conceptual contributions from the UNESCO Artificial Intelligence Competency Framework for Teachers (UNESCO, 2024) and related scholarly discourse, the paper argues that effective AI integration requires not only technological proficiency but also an ethically grounded, contextually responsive, and pedagogically sound approach. The analysis identifies five interrelated domains: AI as transformation, governance and ethics, teacher agency, inclusive pedagogy, and the role of open resources in fostering AI literacy. The article concludes by highlighting the implications for higher education pedagogues in designing curricula that support critical, reflective, and human-centred uses of AI.