Project AI-Vision: Expert Views about the Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Science and Implications for Science Education

The Project

The project investigates the views of experts in philosophy of science, physical and natural sciences, and science education research about the role of AI in science and education.

Although artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly having a major impact on science, secondary school science education is yet to reflect the latest fast-changing developments in scientific thinking and practices. AI is used by scientists to generate hypotheses, design experiments, collect and interpret data in ways that were not previously possible with traditional methods alone. A significant shortcoming in science education research is lack of consensus about what should be prioritised about the use of AI in science for educational purposes.

The project has an interdisciplinary agenda drawing on expertise from the humanities, STEM, and social sciences, and aims to produce (a) conceptual synthesis on AI use in science from an epistemological perspective, (b) an account of how practitioners of science are engaged with AI in scientific research, and (c) a set of pragmatic recommendations for school science based on science education research evidence. Target experts are philosophers of science, scientists in the physical and natural sciences, and science education researchers whose research concern the use of AI in science. The project employs the Delphi Method to investigate the views of 18 experts and to reach a consensus about target teaching and learning objectives for school science. The experts are selected nationally on the basis of AI use in their research.

 

Background literature:

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adm9788

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09500693.2024.2306604

External Team

    Research Student, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford

Project Details

Start date: August 2024
End date: October 2025
Funder: John Fell Fund
Theme: Pedagogy, Learning and Knowledge