During my exchange semester at the University of Agder in Norway, I participated in a research project «Thoughtful Use of AI in Education». The application of AI has become increasingly prevalent in various fields, particularly in education, which saw a significant rise in AI adoption following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many people utilize AI in their educational pursuits without fully understanding how AI functions, how it processes their information, and what the future implications of this data might be. Often, individuals are unaware of their interaction with AI while learning languages, taking classes, or using translation tools, among other activities. It is crucial to recognize when and how AI is employed, the purposes it serves, and whether it functions solely as intended.
Given these considerations, my research in this project focused on answering the question «Is Ethical Use of AI in Education Sufficient?». To address this question, I reflected on what ethical use should entail. A pertinent quote from Holmes encapsulates this idea: «doing ethical things and doing things ethically» (Holmes et al., 2021). This means we should make decisions that serve a good ethical purpose while also considering their long-term ethical impact.
I explored different ethical principles across various areas, including education, AI, data, and society, and investigated frameworks that support the ethical application of AI. When using AI, it is essential to be aware of data ownership and control, and to address issues such as informed consent, privacy breaches, and biased data assumptions to ensure fairness and accountability. It is important to balance data protection and transparency in decision-making with the quality of learning experiences for students. Limiting learning systems based on these ethical considerations can be seen as responsible on one hand, but on the other, it can also potentially diminish the quality of education students receive. To explore methods for protecting data anonymity, it should be recognized that there are many identifiers beyond just names.
For educational content, it is crucial to set a clear purpose for learning and to define the role the technology should play in relation to teachers. Issues such as power dynamics and surveillance in education should be carefully balanced to support teachers and students without causing harm. Overall, the approach must ensure representativeness and equity, so that minorities are not overlooked and every school, educator, and learner has equal opportunities.
To ensure the thoughtful and ethical use of AI, collaboration is essential among all stakeholders. Academics who study ethics, researchers who develop AI systems, and learners who use these systems must work together to establish and follow best practices for AI in education.
This project provided me with a comprehensive understanding of the current state of AI use and potential areas for improvement. I hope this research will raise awareness about more thoughtful AI usage among many people. As a student who frequently uses AI for educational purposes, this experience was invaluable. I am grateful for the opportunity to deepen my knowledge on how to interact with AI to create a better educational environment.