Leading the AI Classroom: Leadership Challenges in Adopting AI-Based Learning in Schools — A Mixed-Methods Study of Private Central Board Schools in Bidar District, Karnataka

Leading the AI Classroom examines artificial intelligence in education from the perspective of the people expected to lead its implementation. Based on a mixed-methods study involving 200 principals, teachers, students and parents from private Central Board schools in Bidar District, Karnataka, the book investigates stakeholder readiness, institutional barriers and the leadership capabilities required for successful AI-based learning. The study shows that the challenges of AI adoption are not merely technical. Resistance to change, hierarchical decision-making, uneven infrastructure, staff competency gaps, data-governance concerns and ethical questions can significantly influence implementation. The book therefore places leadership at the centre of educational digital transformation. Across six chapters, the volume moves from policy context and theoretical foundations through research design, findings, discussion and recommendations. It develops a conceptual understanding of how adaptive, visionary and collaborative leadership can support responsible AI integration in schools. Written for school leaders and administrators, policymakers, teacher educators, research scholars and postgraduate students in education, the book offers an evidence-based account of what AI adoption requires from educational institutions and the leaders responsible for guiding them.