Fostering AI literacy in education: Insights from a targeted teacher training program

Main Article Content

Jessica Niewint-Gori
Sara Mori
Francesca Storai

Abstract

This study examines the impact of targeted professional development on teachers' AI knowledge and confidence. 60 secondary school teachers participated in training on AI principles, applications, and classroom integration, using hands-on and collaborative approaches. The study uses a counterfactual design with pre-post measurements and a control and experimental group. The research measured changes in knowledge of AI concepts and affective responses to AI tools. Results show statistically significant improvements in the intervention group across multiple dimensions: general AI knowledge, familiarity with AI technologies and techniques, ability to distinguish AI from non-AI tools, and perceived ease of use. Teachers also reported increased engagement and reduced anxiety about AI integration, despite greater awareness of implementation complexity. Findings demonstrate that structured professional development combining conceptual understanding with practical application effectively builds foundational AI literacy. The results underscore the need for continuous professional development to address the rapid evolution of AI technologies.

Article Details

Section

Articles - General topics

References

Ahmad, S. F., Rahmat, M. K., Mubarik, M. S., Alam, M. M., & Hyder, S. I. (2021). Artificial intelligence and its role in education. Sustainability, 13(22), 12902. https://doi.org/10.3390/su132212902

Bonaiuti, G., Calvani, A., Menichetti, L., & Vivanet, G. (2017). Le tecnologie educative. Carocci.

Brandão, A., Pedro, L., & Nelson Zagalo, N. (2024). Teacher professional development for a future with generative artificial intelligence: An integrative literature review. Digital Education Review, 45, 151–157. https://doi.org/10.1344/der.2024.45.151-157

Chen, L., Chen, P., & Lin, Z. (2020). Artificial intelligence in education: A review. IEEE Access, 8, 75264–75278. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2020.2988510

Christensen, R. W., & Knezek, G. A. (2009). Construct validity for the teachers’ attitudes toward computers questionnaire. Journal of Computing in Teacher Education, 25(4), 143–155.

Council of Europe. (2022). Artificial intelligence and education: A critical view through the lens of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. Council of Europe. https://rm.coe.int/artificial-intelligence-and-education-a-critical-view-through-the-lens/1680a886bd

Desimone, L. M. (2009). Improving impact studies of teachers' professional development: Toward better conceptualizations and measures. Educational Researcher, 38(3), 181–199. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X08331140

Duflo, E., & Banerjee, A. (Eds.). (2017). Handbook of field experiments (Vol. 1). North-Holland.

European Commission, European Education and Culture Executive Agency. (2023). AI report: By the European Digital Education Hub’s squad on artificial intelligence in education. Publications Office of the European Union. https://doi.org/10.2797/828281

Familoni, B. T., & Onyebuchi, N. C. (2024). Advancements and challenges in AI integration for technical literacy: A systematic review. Engineering Science & Technology Journal, 5(4), 1415–1430. https://doi.org/10.51594/estj.v5i4.1042

Field, A., Miles, J., & Field, Z. (2012). Discovering statistics using R. Sage.

Fissore, C., Floris, F., Fradiante, V., Marchisio Conte, M., & Sacchet, M. (2024). From theory to training: Exploring teachers’ attitudes towards artificial intelligence in education. In Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Computer Supported Education (pp. 118–127). https://doi.org/10.5220/0012734700003693

Fu, Y., Weng, Z., & Wang, J. (2024). Examining AI use in educational contexts: A scoping meta-review and bibliometric analysis. International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, 35(3). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-024-00442-w

Fullan, M. (2007). The new meaning of educational change (4th ed.). Teachers College Press.

Goldman, S. R., Taylor, J., Carreon, A., & Smith, S. J. (2024). Using AI to support special education teacher workload. Journal of Special Education Technology, 39(3), 434–447. https://doi.org/10.1177/01626434241257240

Jamal, A. (2023). The role of artificial intelligence in teacher education: Opportunities and challenges. International Journal of Research and Analytical Reviews, 10(1), 140–146. https://www.ijrar.org

Kaplan-Rakowski, R., Grotewold, K., Hartwick, P., & Papin, K. (2023). Generative AI and teachers’ perspectives on its implementation in education. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 34(2), 313–338. https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/222363/

Kim, J., Lee, H., & Cho, Y. H. (2022). Learning design to support student-AI collaboration: Perspectives of leading teachers for AI in education. Education and Information Technologies, 27(5), 6069–6104. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-021-10831-6

Kurz, T., Jayasuriya, S., Swisher, K., Mativo, J., Pidaparti, R., & Robinson, D. T. (2022). Investigating changes in teachers’ perceptions about artificial intelligence after virtual professional development. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 33(4), 225–241. https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/221764/

MacDowell, P., Moskalyk, K., Korchinski, K., & Morrison, D. (2024). Preparing educators to teach and create with generative artificial intelligence. Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology / Revue canadienne de l’apprentissage et de la technologie, 50(4), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.21432/cjlt28606

Markauskaite, L., Marrone, R., Poquet, O., Knight, S., Martinez-Maldonado, R., Howard, S., Tondeur, J., De Laat, M., Buckingham Shum, S., Gašević, D., & Siemens, G. (2022). Rethinking the entwinement between artificial intelligence and human learning: What capabilities do learners need for a world with AI? Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence, 3, 100056. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeai.2022.100056

Miao, F., & Cukurova, M. (2024). AI competency framework for teachers. UNESCO. https://doi.org/10.54675/ZJTE2084

Mishra, P. (2019). Considering contextual knowledge: The TPACK diagram gets an upgrade. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 35(2), 76–78. https://doi.org/10.1080/21532974.2019.1588611

Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108(6), 1017–1054. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9620.2006.00684.x

Mishra, P., & Warr, M. (2021). Contextualizing TPACK within systems and cultures of practice. Computers in Human Behavior, 117, 106673. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2020.106673

Mishra, P., Warr, M., & Islam, R. (2023). TPACK in the age of ChatGPT and generative AI. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 39(4), 235–251. https://doi.org/10.1080/21532974.2023.2247480

Montgomery, D. C. (2019). Design and analysis of experiments (10th ed.). Wiley.

Mori, S., & Niewint, J. (2024). Personalization and teaching: Cognitive processes and digital technologies for the development of everyone’s potential. QWERTY: Interdisciplinary Journal of Technology, Culture and Education, 19(2), 59–80. https://doi.org/10.30557/QW000086

Niewint-Gori, J. (2023). A snapshot of the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence in education. In Proceedings of Ital-IA 2023 Thematic Workshops (pp. 455–460). https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-3486/92.pdf

Ning, Y., Zhang, C., Xu, B., Zhou, Y., & Wijaya, T. T. (2024). Teachers’ AI-TPACK: Exploring the relationship between knowledge elements. Sustainability, 16(3), 978. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16030978

Noiwan, J., Piyawat, T., & Norcio, A. F. (2005). Computer attitude and computer self-efficacy: A case study of Thai undergraduate students. In Proceedings of the Human-Computer Interaction International Conference (HCII 2005).

OECD. (2023). OECD digital education outlook 2023: Towards an effective digital education ecosystem. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/c74f03de-en

Paris, A., Labetoulle, A., Bezjak, S., Butler, D., Cardoso-Leite, P., Chesné, J.-F., Kirsch, C., Mori, S., Nardi, A., Nencioni, P., Niewint, J., Rivera, L., Rossi, F., Toci, V., & Mirazchiyski, P. V. (2024). AI4T: Comparative European evaluation report. Laboratoire Formation et Apprentissages Professionnels and Cnesco. https://hal.science/hal-04557981v1

Pedro, F., Subosa, M., Rivas, A., & Valverde, P. (2019). Artificial intelligence in education: Challenges and opportunities for sustainable development. UNESCO. https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12799/6533

Polak, S., Schiavo, G., & Zancanaro, M. (2022). Teachers’ perspectives on artificial intelligence education: An initial investigation. In CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems Extended Abstracts (pp. 1–7). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3491101.3519866

Salas-Pilco, S. Z., Xiao, K., & Hu, X. (2022). Artificial intelligence and learning analytics in teacher education: A systematic review. Education Sciences, 12(8), 569. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12080569

Shemshack, A., & Spector, J. M. (2020). A systematic literature review of personalized learning terms. Smart Learning Environments, 7, 33. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40561-020-00132-4

Tomlinson, C. A. (2014). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners (2nd ed.). Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology. (2023). Artificial intelligence and the future of teaching and learning: Insights and recommendations. https://tech.ed.gov/files/2023/05/ai-future-of-teaching-and-learning-report.pdf

Vuorikari, R., Kluzer, S., & Punie, Y. (2022). DigComp 2.2: The digital competence framework for citizens: With new examples of knowledge, skills and attitudes. Publications Office of the European Union. https://doi.org/10.2760/115376

World Economic Forum. (2024). Shaping the future of learning: The role of AI in education 4.0. https://www.weforum.org/publications/shaping-the-future-of-learning-the-role-of-ai-in-education-4-0/

Yousef, A. (2024). Challenges and best practices in training teachers to utilize artificial intelligence: A systematic review. Frontiers in Education, 9, 1470853. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1470853