2026/07/16 by Sara Perdigão, Isabel Saúde, José Luís Araújo +3
Computer Science · Medicine · Social Sciences · #Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education #Class (philosophy) #Context (archaeology) #Context effect #Critical thinking #Exploratory research #Perception #Portuguese #Qualitative research #Science Education and Pedagogy #Subject (documents) #Teaching and Learning Programming
paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/1361-6552/ae8498
openalex publication_date 2026/07/16 · openalex created_date 2026/07/17 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
Abstract In the context of the growing integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education, it is essential to understand how these technologies are incorporated into teaching practices and how they influence the development of transversal skills. Despite the rapid dissemination of generative AI (GenAI) tools, there remains a lack of applied research at the lower secondary education level. This qualitative and exploratory study was conducted with a 7th-grade class in the subject of Physics in Portugal. Its main goal was to analyse the effects of using GenAI in school research tasks, exploring how it influences students’ access to information, peer collaboration, and critical thinking. The findings reveal that although GenAI facilitates access to and organisation of information, it also promotes uncritical use and reduce peer interaction. Conversely, tasks carried out without GenAI were characterised by greater collaboration, source verification, and cognitive engagement. The study concludes that the integration of GenAI in teaching should be both critical and pedagogically guided, promoting students’ autonomy, digital literacy, and reflective thinking. The research indicates the importance of preparing teachers and students for the ethical and informed use of these tools in educational contexts.