Beyond AI Adoption: K-12 Teachers’ Generative Learning in AI-Integrated Teaching Practice

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Saturday 7:45 am
  In Poster Session: From Adoption to Transformation: AI Integration, Critical Pedagogy, and Sustaining Futures in Teacher Preparation

Abstract

This paper develops a generative learning framework to explain how K-12 teachers in China integrate AI into teaching practice. Drawing on interviews with 18 teachers, this study reveals that the process of teachers’ collaboration with AI is dynamic and continuous, involving four stages: initial engagement, knowledge construction, critical reflection, and metacognitive development. Teachers begin by engaging with AI proactively or in response to institutional demands, then explore its potential to support knowledge acquisition, broaden intellectual horizons, and inspire innovative instructional design. Over time, teachers reflect on AI’s limitations, deepening metacognitive development and reaffirming their unique role in emotional and moral guidance. This study extends generative learning theory to teaching practice and provides insights for teacher development in the AI era.

Authors

• chenlu liu, East China Normal University

• Zheng Xin, East China Normal University