The Future of Artificial Intelligence in Special Education: Opportunities, Risks, and Ethical Challenges
16th Balkan Educational Sciences Congress, Edirne, Türkiye, 15 - 17 Ekim 2025, sa.350, ss.182, (Özet Bildiri)
- Yayın Türü: Bildiri / Özet Bildiri
- Basıldığı Şehir: Edirne
- Basıldığı Ülke: Türkiye
- Sayfa Sayıları: ss.182
- Trakya Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a rapidly developing technology with the potential to bring significant changes, particularly in special education. This paper discusses AI’s contributions to the education of individuals with special needs, teacher training, ethical responsibilities, and the necessity for legal regulations. Like in many other fields such as healthcare, finance, transportation, industry, agriculture, security, media, and public administration, AI stands out in education through applications such as speech recognition, writing assistance, natural language processing, and personalized learning. These technologies offer important opportunities for individuals with various disabilities, enabling more active participation in the educational process. However, ethical issues such as the privacy of student data, biases in algorithms, system transparency, and students’ awareness of content must be carefully addressed. Therefore, it is essential for teachers and prospective teachers to be trained to use AI consciously and ethically. There are differing opinions on AI’s presence in education; while some view this technology as a threat, others believe it offers great opportunities when used appropriately. These debates resemble those that emerged during previous technological innovations. Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini have the potential not only to produce information but also to assist in organizing written content and supporting cognitive development. However, the lack of sufficient representation of individuals with special needs and educators in the development of such systems poses challenges in terms of inclusivity. For this reason, all stakeholders must be included in the AI development process. In addition, prospective teachers should acquire AI literacy skills and be made aware of ethical principles, transparency, safety, and critical thinking. In conclusion, AI in special education embodies both powerful opportunities and responsibilities. This This presentation will address the significance of such technologies for individuals with special needs, explore how they can be structured in both general and special education settings, discuss the requirements for teacher training, and offer policy recommendations based on potential needs that may arise.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Special Education, Teacher Training, Ethics, Individualized Instruction