Investigating High School Students’ Attitudes Toward the Use of AI in Education: Evidence from Cambodia

Recently, there has been a plethora of studies about students’ attitudes toward the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in education, particularly in higher education and language education; however, research on AI use in high school settings has gained relatively little attention, leaving a huge research gap in the literature. This study seeks to address this research gap by examining high school students’ attitudes toward using AI-powered tools in education in Cambodia. Utilizing evidence from an online survey with 315 students (female = 62.50%), the study showed that Cambodian high school students expressed generally favorable attitudes toward utilizing AI-powered tools in education, particularly pertaining to the use of AI to aid in completing school work. However, the study identified key concerns about data privacy and security issues, the risk of becoming over-dependent on AI, and limited originality about students’ work. It was also found that students tended to be less concerned with the potential reduction in their critical thinking and creativity skills, and the possibility of receiving false or incorrect responses from AI. Key opportunities of using AI in education were also identified, including the potential to assist students in learning languages and help them summarize texts, translate languages, and/or brainstorm ideas. The study underscored the significance of developing students’ AI literacy through training and awareness raising programs, and the importance of formulating comprehensive AI policies to promote the ethical and effective use of AI technologies in high school settings. The study concluded with some limitations and directions for future studies.