By Rinesh Dalal.
Artificial Intelligence is now a part of our daily lives. It can generate images, suggest designs, predict trends, and even create concepts within seconds. For creative fields like design, fashion, and interiors, this change is big. But instead of seeing AI as a threat, design education should see it as a turning point. It is an opportunity to rethink how creativity is taught and developed.
For many years, design education focused strongly on skills, drawing, software, technical execution, and production. These skills are still important, but today AI tools can perform many of these tasks quickly. This means the real value of a designer is no longer only in making things, but in thinking deeply, making choices, and creating meaning.
So what should design education focus on now?
First, we must teach students how to think, not just how to use tools. Tools keep changing. Software updates. Platforms evolve. But creative thinking, problem-solving, and idea development stay relevant. Students should learn how to ask the right questions, understand the problem clearly, and build strong concepts. AI can give many options, but it cannot decide which idea is socially right, emotionally powerful, or culturally sensitive. That decision must come from a human designer.
Second, we need to redefine originality. In the AI age, being original does not always mean creating everything from zero. It means creating with clear intention and direction. Students should learn how to guide AI tools properly by writing better prompts, refining outputs, and adding their own thinking. The future designer will be someone who directs creativity, not just produces it.
Third, the learning process should be valued more than the final result. AI can create polished designs very fast. If we only judge the final output, we may not understand the student’s real ability. Schools should give importance to research, sketches, idea development, trials, and even failures. When students show how they reached an idea, we see true creativity.
Fourth, design education should become more interdisciplinary. Creativity grows when different fields connect. Design students should learn basics of technology, culture, psychology, sustainability, and business. This wider exposure helps them think in more layers. AI works on mixed data from many fields, students should also learn to think across fields.
Fifth, ethics must be part of creative education. AI brings questions about copyright, data use, bias, and originality. Students must understand responsible use of AI. They should learn what is fair use, what is plagiarism, and how to give credit. Creative power must come with creative responsibility.
Sixth, human qualities will become more important, not less. Empathy, storytelling, cultural understanding, and emotional connection are things AI cannot truly feel. Good design connects with people. To build this quality, students should do real-world projects, meet users, study communities, and understand human behavior, not just sit in front of screens.
Seventh, assessment methods should change. Traditional exams and fixed-answer formats do not always measure creativity well. Portfolio reviews, project-based evaluation, peer feedback, and reflection notes give a better picture of a student’s creative growth. Education should reward clarity of thought and originality of approach, not just perfect output.
Eighth, teachers must also keep learning. AI is changing fast. Educators should experiment with new tools and methods and bring current industry practices into classrooms. Today, a teacher’s role is not only to give information, but to guide thinking and mentor creative journeys.
Most importantly, creativity should stay connected to values. Technology increases speed and scale, but values guide direction. In my own journey in education, I have been strongly influenced by my father, Mr. Yogesh Dalal, a highly experienced educationist, whose lifelong dedication to value-based learning has shaped my belief that true education builds both skill and character.
The future is not about AI replacing designers. It is about designers working with AI in smarter ways. If design education focuses on thinking, ethics, empathy, and concept building, students will not only adapt to this new era they will lead it.
AI can generate designs. But meaningful creativity will always come from the human mind.
The author Rinesh Dalal is the Director of JD Institute of Fashion Technology.
DISCLAIMER: The views expressed are solely of the author and ETEDUCATION does not necessarily subscribe to it. ETEDUCATION will not be responsible for any damage caused to any person or organisation directly or indirectly.
