Artificial Intelligence (AI) Integration in Teacher Education: Assessing Risks, Rewards and policy readiness through the RPET Framework

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in teacher education presents opportunities to enhance teaching, learning, and institutional processes, but its adoption in developing contexts such as Nigeria is constrained by infrastructural, ethical, and policy challenges. This study employed the Responsible, Pedagogical, Ethical, and Transformational (RPET) framework to examine stakeholders’ perceptions of AI integration, including perceived risks, rewards, institutional and pedagogical readiness, ethical awareness, and familiarity with national education and ICT policies. A quantitative survey design was used to collect data from 302 participants—lecturers, administrators, ICT personnel, and pre-service teachers—across selected Colleges of Education in North-West Nigeria. Descriptive statistics indicated that stakeholders perceived AI as highly transformative and pedagogically beneficial (M = 3.82; M = 3.48), while ethical awareness and policy readiness were comparatively low (M = 3.09; M = 3.21). ANOVA analysis revealed significant differences among stakeholder groups in perceptions of pedagogical readiness and responsibility, with lecturers and ICT personnel rating these dimensions higher than students and administrators. Pearson correlation analysis showed strong positive associations between responsible use, pedagogical alignment, and transformational potential, while ethical awareness was moderately correlated with other dimensions. Regression analysis indicated that policy familiarity significantly predicted responsible AI use. Findings suggest that AI integration can meaningfully transform teacher education when adoption is guided by responsible and pedagogically aligned practices; however, ethical literacy, policy guidance, and infrastructure require strengthening. The study concludes that Nigerian teacher education institutions must implement targeted professional development, ethical awareness programs, and policy frameworks to support sustainable AI integration. By applying the RPET framework, this study provides a roadmap for responsible, effective, and ethically sound AI adoption framework in Teacher Education.