Generative artificial intelligence in secondary STEM education in the light of Human Flourishing: a scoping literature review

Abstract

Background: Education for Human Flourishing aims to empower students to develop their full potential to lead a meaningful, autonomous life to the benefit of themselves and society at large. Recent technological developments call for an evaluation of the entanglement of (Education for) Human Flourishing and generative Artificial Intelligence (AI). Following the PRISMA guidelines, this scoping review investigates to what extent the current literature has addressed research desiderata on STEM Education for Human Flourishing in an age of generative AI based on three themes proposed by the OECD (2024b). To this end, 183 eligible publications were analyzed regarding their general characteristics, research themes as well as strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOTs). Results: The scoping literature review reveals a focus on cognitive aspects of STEM education despite the need to broaden human capabilities in the light of generative AI. Ethical aspects are sidelined, although the SWOT analysis shows some significance of these issues, and learning about generative AI is largely neglected. Moreover, there is a lack of research on STEM-specific theoretical models and research is concentrated in the Global North, both of which might undermine an unbiased, culturally diverse development of new solutions for generative AI in secondary STEM education. The majority of current research examines AI-generated content instead of human participants, and publications focus on the performance and development of AI tools instead of their impact and application. This might hinder a human-centered approach to generative AI in secondary STEM education, potentially threatening human identity and meaning and thereby Human Flourishing. Conclusions: Based on the results, we show that existing literature has not yet sufficiently addressed research desiderata on STEM Education for Human Flourishing in an age of generative AI. Our findings thus point to future research perspectives necessary to strengthen Human Flourishing in STEM education and ensure a human-centered, meaningful approach to generative AI.