Artificial Intelligence (AI) Research Trends in Science Education: A Critical Review of Ethical Concerns

Artificial intelligence (AI) is the science and engineering of intelligent machines to achieve goals that improve humanity and advance the common good. This systematic literature review aimed to examine how AI in science education was addressed in 39 empirical and peer-reviewed studies in science education indexed in the Web of Science database from first mention until the end of 2024, and to address ethical concerns. Content analysis was used to identify trends in AI research in science education. This review revealed that research on AI in science education has increased significantly in recent years. USA and Korea were found to be the origin of most of the research. This study demonstrated that very few of the studies involved AI, such as ChatGPT, as a participant, and most of them involved humans as participants. On the other hand, most studies focused on K-12 students, and the fewest focused on university students and educators. The development of AI raises social and ethical concerns. Nearly half of the reviewed articles did not address AI-related ethical concerns. The most common ethical concerns addressed were bias, privacy, and accuracy. This study can provide important evidence-based support for future studies of AI in science education.