AI in education and cultural barriers: a mixed-methods study with Argentinean university students

Abstract

This study explore students’ use and perceptions of AIEd in Buenos Aires, Argentina, through a large-scale mixed-methods design. Also, associate AIEd perceptions and use with sociodemographic variables, to evaluate possible sociocultural barriers to access. 1033 students from different Argentinean universities (M.age= 26.95, SD = 9.20, female = 713) completed virtual sociodemographic and the use and perception of AIEd questionnaires. Then, two focus groups (total.n = 47) were applied to deepen the analysis of the perception of barriers and advantages of using AIEd. Quantitative findings showed lower AIEd usage among older, workers, females and public university students. Qualitative results highlighted AIEd as both a facilitator and a barrier to learning, emphasizing the university’s role in promoting the ethical and critical use of AIEd. Most students were familiar with AIEd and used it occasionally, primarily for accessing information and generating content. However, concerns emerged around plagiarism, cognitive dependency and unequal access. It is concluded that more challenges must be resolved to adopt a responsible and high-quality use of AIEd in universities and gender and socioeconomic barriers may be affecting its use in the region. These underscore the need for equity-oriented AIEd literacy initiatives to ensure responsible and inclusive AIEd integration in higher education.