AI Ethics in STEM Education

Recent developments in AI across various domains have reignited debate regarding the ethical issues involved in its development and use. One main concern relates to preparing undergraduate STEM students for their future roles as AI developers and practitioners. To address this concern, the current study examined the perceived and actual ethical awareness of undergraduate STEM students engaged in a reflective-collaborative case-based learning intervention on AI ethics. Using a mixed-methods approach, data were collected from 153 undergraduate students through pre- and post-intervention questionnaires and students’ reflections. The questionnaires included a closed-ended Likert-type scale to assess students’ perceived awareness of AI ethics, while actual awareness was evaluated through open-ended questions focusing on their ability to identify ethical dilemmas and propose potential solutions. The findings revealed that although students recognized the importance of AI ethics, they initially expressed low confidence in their ability to address ethical issues. Following the intervention, the gap between students’ perceived and actual ethical awareness was reduced. Moreover, students reported that the group discussions helped them grasp complex ethical issues more clearly and challenged their initial assumptions.