The purpose of this study is to develop an AI tool–integrated educational program for the biotechnology unit in middle school and to analyze its educational effects through classroom implementation. The biotechnology unit in technology education inv...
The purpose of this study is to develop an AI tool–integrated educational program for the biotechnology unit in middle school and to analyze its educational effects through classroom implementation. The biotechnology unit in technology education involves both abstract concepts and ethical issues, requiring learners’ deep conceptual understanding and critical thinking. For example, gene-editing technologies require an understanding of biological phenomena at a micro-level centered on genes and DNA, while simultaneously demanding ethical judgment regarding human life and values. However, recent needs analysis studies on technology teacher professionals indicate that, despite the high curricular importance of the biotechnology unit, existing educational programs remain relatively insufficient, highlighting the need for instructional support in school settings. Accordingly, this study aimed to develop a biotechnology education program utilizing AI tools in alignment with the growing emphasis on digital and AI literacy.
In this study, AI tools were conceptualized not as naive answer finder but as “learning partners” that support inquiry and reflection. Based on this perspective, I developed a biotechnology education program with a staged instructional flow consisting of introduction, inquiry, sharing, and reflection. During the inquiry stage, NotebookLM was used to facilitate concept exploration and structuring based on verified sources. In the sharing stage, Napkin AI was employed to visualize complex biotechnology principles and reorganize them into infographic formats. In the reflection stage, students revised and refined their ethical essays on biotechnology by referencing AI-generated feedback provided through the platform Jajakjajak, thereby deepening their thinking.
The developed program was implemented over eight class sessions with 75 ninth-grade students at a middle school in Seoul. A mixed-methods research design was adopted, incorporating pre- and post-surveys, open-ended questionnaire responses, and individual interviews to analyze the program’s effects.
The results indicated changes in students’ competencies across five domains measured by 20 items on a five-point Likert scale. Statistically significant improvements were observed in AI and digital literacy, biotechnology learning, AI feedback utilization, and ethical reflection competencies (p < .01). Although no statistically significant change was found in inquiry learning competency metric in the quantitative analysis, qualitative findings revealed improvements in the refinement of thinking, the specificity of question generation, and increased learning engagement. Interviews further indicated that students perceived AI tools as learning partners and reported receiving substantial support in understanding complex biotechnology concepts and organizing their perspectives logically.
Meanwhile, despite these positive educational outcomes, there remains a fundamental concern that excessive dependence on AI tools may hinder the long-term development of cognitive abilities and independent learning competencies. Therefore, teachers and educational program designers should carefully consider the dual nature of AI tool use and continuously seek pedagogical approaches that balance support and learner agency. This study is significant as an exploratory attempt to propose a systematically integrated AI-based instructional model for the biotechnology unit in middle school technology education and provides foundational data for future expansion into diverse educational domains.