Teacher Educator Perceptions of Preparing Pre-Service Teachers in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

• In Event: Teacher Education in Transition: Equity, Innovation, and Professional Formation

Proposal

Introduction

Teacher educators are facing a new and complex challenge. Since the release of the GenAI tool ChatGPT in November 2022, AI technologies have rapidly entered our lives and raised questions about their integration into teacher education. Beyond whether to integrate AI, teacher educators are confronted with critical decisions about how, why and to what extent these technologies should or should not be incorporated. Moreover, since the expansion of GenAI technologies, student use and faculty permissions regarding GenAI tools have sometimes led to tensions (Shaw et al., 2023). In response to the expansion of these tools, U.S. colleges have developed AI policy documents and created guidelines, notes, and toolkits to help faculty and students better understand how AI can be used in teaching, learning and research (e.g., Penn State University, 2025; Teachers College, 2025, Stanford University, 2025, University of Washington, 2025). It is increasingly evident that AI is becoming a significant component of teacher education programs (TEPs), even in courses not directly related to educational technology.
Pre-service teachers must learn why and how to use AI during their own studies, what precautions to take to avoid losing essential professional and personal skills due to overreliance on AI, and the potential benefits and drawbacks (including environmental impacts) of AI technologies in both educational and social contexts. As future classroom leaders, they are expected to guide their students in responsible AI use, raise awareness of its risks and advantages, and leverage its potential to improve student outcomes. Therefore, it is crucial that they acquire these knowledge and skills during their TEPs before entering the profession. In-service professional development often falls short in preparing teachers adequately, as recent studies show that many teachers do not “feel guided or prepared.” (Gayed, 2025). In addition to institutional decisions, perspectives, actions, policy orientations, understandings, beliefs, and biases of teacher educators regarding AI must be examined. These insights are crucial for shaping effective AI integration strategies in TEPs. This study aims to explore the following questions: What do teacher educators think about the role and status of AI technologies in teacher education? What is the current place of AI in TEPs? What are the existing or potential threats, risks, and concerns? What can be done to overcome these challenges?
This paper represents the initial phase of a multi-faceted research process aimed at developing GenAI-enhanced course curriculum for teaching practice. The long-term goal is to explore how GenAI technologies can be used more effectively, ethically, and safely in educational settings. Teacher educators play a pivotal role in this process. Therefore, gaining insight into how teacher educators currently use or choose not to use AI in their classrooms, as well as understanding their attitudes toward the rapid expansion of GenAI in educational environments can provide valuable guidance for informing AI policies at the Colleges of Education.

Methods

The study group consists of teacher educators teaching in undergraduate TEPs across the U.S. Participants are selected through snowball sampling (Parker, Scott & Geddes, 2019) to identify individuals who are currently integrating, or have previously integrated GenAI tools into their courses. Designed as a qualitative single-case study (Stake, 2005), data is being collected through interviews with teacher educators using the Teacher Educator Interview Protocol developed by the researchers. Two pilot interviews have been conducted and analyzed, with further data collection planned for the Fall semester. The data from these pilot interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using an open coding approach to identify themes aligned with the research problem.

Preliminary Findings

Analysis of the pilot interviews reveals four interconnected themes in teacher educators’ perspectives on GenAI use in education. First, educators voiced a range of AI use concerns, including the uncritical acceptance of GenAI outputs, the commercial exploitation of AI technologies, hype and overestimation of AI’s capabilities, labor displacement, over-reliance, lack of evidence-based practices, and the risk of wasting resources. In terms of GenAI’s impact, participants noted its usefulness particularly for experts, highlighting its role in facilitating discussions, supporting brainstorming sessions, and helping synthesize notes. Teacher educators also shared their views on what teacher candidates should know and be able to do with AI. Their responses emphasized the importance of ethical awareness and reliability, thoughtful and purposeful planning, an understanding of teaching about, against, through and with AI. When reflecting on their own roles in preparing future teachers, educators pointed to the need for clear policies on AI use, the importance of building rapport before GenAI introduction, and meaningful and thoughtful integration of GenAI into curricula. They also stressed the significance of fostering collective agency in AI integration and ensuring that learning environments remain safe and supportive.

Author

• Gulbahar Yilmaz, Michigan State University, College of Education