AI-Based Education: Prospective Teachers’ Perception towards AI Tool Usage

Abstract

AI tools gradually increase their popularity among students, Teachers, administration for various purposes. The advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the educational sphere is a reality, and its integration is essential for success, making it crucial to understand the perception of prospective teachers toward the integration of AI in the classroom. This paper examines the perceptions of 108 pre-service teachers studying at the University of Lucknow towards the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies. In the conduct of this study, a descriptive survey research methodology was employed, and the data for the study were gathered through a 20-item questionnaire developed by the researcher on a Likert scale. Descriptive statistics such as mean and standard deviation were used together with independent sample t-test for analysing the obtained data. The results suggested that the perceptions regarding the use of AI tools were similar across students in Arts and Science Streams. Similarly, there was no statistically significant difference between the perceptions of males and females who intend to be teachers in the future. However, a statistically significant difference emerged between urban and rural prospective teachers, where urban prospective teachers were more likely to have high mean value of perception toward AI tools usage. The results indicate that there is a digital divide between urban and rural environments, yet there is overall acceptance of AI. The absence of significant differences based on Gender and Academic stream suggests that acceptance of AI tools is not determined by demographic or disciplinary factors. As users gain exposure to AI technologies and recognize their educational value, their willingness to use these tools appears to become more uniform. This highlights the inclusive nature of AI- supported learning across diverse student’s groups. The study suggests the following policy implications: Promoting AI-based targeted training for rural teacher education programs is an important measure in facilitating equitable professional development; Improving technological infrastructure is a key step for achieving equitable access to professional development.