Date
Publisher
arXiv
The first generation of students is learning to program alongside GenAI (Generative Artificial Intelligence) tools, raising questions about how young learners critically engage with them and perceive ethical responsibilities. While prior research has focused on university students or developers, little is known about secondary school novices, who represent the next cohort of software engineers. To address this gap, we conducted an exploratory study with 84 German secondary school students aged 16-19 attending software development workshops. We examined their critical thinking practices in AI-assisted programming, perceptions of AI ethics and responsibility, and gender-related differences in their views. Our results reveal an AI paradox: students demonstrate strong ethical reasoning and awareness about AI, yet many report integrating AI-generated code without a thorough understanding of it. The majority of our cohort attributed significant responsibility for AI practices to politics and corporations, potentially reflecting Germany's cultural context, with its strict regulations and data privacy discourse. Boys reported more frequent and experimental use of AI-assisted programming, whereas girls expressed greater scepticism and emphasised peer collaboration over GenAI assistance. Our findings highlight the importance of culturally responsive software engineering education that strengthens critical AI literacy in AI-assisted programming by linking ethics to concrete code artefacts and preparing young learners for this AI-driven software landscape.
Study at a glance
- Question: How do secondary school students perceive critical thinking and ethics in AI-assisted programming, and do views differ by gender?
- Setting and data: Extracurricular workshops in Germany, summer 2025, 84 secondary school students aged 16 to 19.
- Method: Mixed methods survey combining Likert-scale questions, open-ended responses, descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and thematic analysis.
Why it matters
Understanding how secondary school novices use generative AI tools and perceive ethical usage is essential for developing curricula that help students build strong foundational software engineering principles.
Key findings
- German students showed an AI paradox: while 88% recognized risks of misuse, 21% agreed and 32% remained neutral on using code they do not fully understand.
- Boys were significantly more likely than girls to ask generative AI before consulting a teammate (p = .034), whereas girls emphasized human collaboration.
- Girls agreed more strongly than boys that people should be held accountable for using generative AI systems (p = .046), emphasizing user and developer responsibility.
Summary drafted with AI from the full paper and may contain errors. See the full paper for details.
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