Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly shaping various aspects of everyday life, which calls for its integration into the educational system. This master's thesis explores the current state of AI education worldwide, examines how primary school teachers perceive the benefits of teaching fundamental AI concepts at the elementary level, identifies the challenges they face, and assesses their willingness to teach AI. It also addresses the issue of teaching materials, with a particular focus on the interactive multimedia resources (interactive videos) developed as part of the internal research project entitled “Development of Interactive Open Educational Resources (OER) for Teaching Fundamental Concepts of Artificial Intelligence in the 2nd and 3rd Educational Period of Primary School,” conducted at the Faculty of Education, University of Ljubljana, in 2025 and 2026. The study investigates teachers’ views on the appropriateness and usability of these materials for classroom use.
The purpose of the research was to determine the extent to which teachers recognize the value of these resources, whether they consider them sufficiently comprehensive for delivering a complete lesson, and to what degree they would be willing to implement them in their own teaching.
The empirical part of the thesis is based on a quantitative study conducted among Slovenian primary school teachers. The analysis of the survey data reveals that most teachers consider the developed interactive multimedia materials appropriate and useful. The findings indicate that, on average, teachers are inclined to integrate AI into their lessons, while also recognizing the need for additional support. Ethical considerations in the use of AI in education were emphasized, reflecting teachers’ strong sense of responsibility.
Despite the generally positive reception of the materials, the results also highlight certain concerns, including lack of time, the placement of AI within the curriculum, and perceived differences in teacher competencies across subject areas. The thesis concludes that successful implementation of AI education in primary schools requires systemic support, encompassing both high-quality educational resources and ongoing professional development for teachers. It underscores the importance of carefully designed AI-related learning content in primary education and calls for continued development of pedagogical approaches and teacher training to enable the effective inclusion of such content in everyday teaching.
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