Application” on the artificial intelligence (AI) literacy of students in the field of counseling. Participants in this study were firstyear

undergraduate students from the relevant counseling departments. We incorporated inquiry and hands-on experiences into

the curriculum of “Artificial Intelligence and its Application” to provide an opportunity for students not majoring in information

technology to learn the concepts of AI and to gain hands-on experience for improving their AI literacy. Our strategy involved

promoting students’ interest for exploring how AI can be used in the field of counseling and guidance. This study adopted the

action research method. The teaching effects of the course were evaluated, and the data were analyzed using the AI Attitudes,

Knowledge, and Skills Scale compiled by Chen (2020) and the Course Learning Experience and Thinking Note Written after the

Course tool. Moreover, students were invited for a focus group interview, and their final grades served as qualitative data that

were analyzed in this study.

The quantitative analysis results revealed that the students’ AI literacy increased after they were taught using the general

education curriculum of the course. Moreover, their pretest scores were significantly higher than the post-test scores for the

AI knowledge and ability subscale. The above results reached a significant level (p < .001), indicating that the students’ AI

knowledge and skills were markedly enhanced after one semester of the course. Most of the subscales and total scores related to

AI attitude were higher in the post-test than in the pretest, but the difference was nonsignificant. To verify the reliability of the

pretest and post-test quantitative results, this study conducted a correlation analysis between AI literacy subscale and students’

final grades. The correlation coefficient was between .059 and .515. Moreover, the scores of the decision-making component in

the AI attitude scale and AI knowledge and skills subscale were significantly positively correlated with the students’ final grades

(p < .01 and p < .05, respectively).

The qualitative analysis results were divided into three major themes and eight categories. The first theme pertained to

the influence of the AI course design, which incorporated inquiry and practice, on students’ learning; the learning outcomes

included increasing their awareness and reflection on AI through theoretical courses. First, the theoretical courses in this study

employed diverse instructional modes, including film appreciation, listening to lectures, and teaching by professors. Second,

through practical courses, students gained experience in the use of AI, including machine learning, deep learning, algorithms,

and programming, and they learned through practice. During the course, students believed interacting with AI to be a novel

and interesting experience. However, few students reported negative experiences because they found the programming aspect

to be challenging. Finally, by exploring the theme and creating a report on the theme, students learned to integrate multifaceted

abilities, such as positive feelings about classmates’ reports, students’ abilities to prepare and complete the report, and students’

Bulletin of Educational Psychology, 2024, 56(1), 1–24

National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.reflections on AI that were triggered by the theme report.

The second theme pertained to the AI literacy developed and possessed by students during the learning process. Students

gained an increased understanding of the basic concepts of AI and uncertainties, and they learned to apply AI in consulting

fields, as well as other cross-field applications in life. Closely linked with this theme was the students’ attitude toward AI. For

example, students may have a positive attitude toward AI courses incorporating inquiry and practice, a tolerant attitude toward

the continued development of AI technology, worries and doubts regarding learning about AI through courses, and negative

attitudes toward AI courses. Through the course in this study,The two clauses in this sentence sound contradictory to me. As

a reader, my doubt is whether the authors observed a change in the attitude towards AI from negative to positive or did they n

ot observe any significant change?Please clarify this sentence. Finally, this theme focused on the skills of AI, such as learning

applications related to AI, implementing initial research ideas into executable research plans through teamwork, and practicing

interactions with the Kebbi robot to cultivate empathy and interview skills.

The third theme pertained to the students’ expectations from the design of AI courses and the teaching methods used. If

teachers possess professional knowledge of AI, they must combine it with the field of counseling and consultation. Teachers

were also expected to provide more guidance on the final report, and they were expected to be the sole person responsible for

the implementation of courses. Thus, few teaching assistants were involved in the course. Regarding the course design, students

expected to understand the current development status of AI technology and the operating principles of AI. Moreover, at the end

of the course, they should be able to integrate AI into the field of counseling and consultation.

The findings indicate that inquiry-based and hands-on teaching methods can help students with nontechnical majors to

learn the concepts and applications of AI. Students’ awareness of the inquiry topic can be increased by teaching them theoretical

concepts, followed by practical courses with diversified content. Overall, this teaching approach can enhance students’

motivation for active learning. The idea, design, and implementation of thematic reports represent the core spirit of inquiry

and practice. Therefore, inquiry and practice teaching can overcome the shortcomings of one-way narrative teaching and are

valuable approaches for teaching students with nontechnical majors. In this course, students in the field of counseling learned

the concepts and applications of AI. After completing a semester of the general education curriculum of the course “Artificial

Intelligence and Its Applications,” first-year students demonstrated significant progress and learning in terms of both the

cognition and skills aspects of AI literacy, as evidenced by the quantitative and qualitative data. Although their attitudes did not

differ significantly between the pretest and post-test, the qualitative data revealed a positive shift from resistance to interest and

awareness of the difficulty of learning AI literacy.

Finally, based on the results, adjustments and revisions to the curriculum on AI and its applications are suggested. For

inquiry and practical teaching methods, basic knowledge learning must first be strengthened in theoretical curricula. When

delivering the course, equal equipment and environment must be provided to every student to ensure a fair learning chance.

In schools, compulsory general curricula should be designed to be more closely related to the corresponding undergraduate

departments. For integrating AI literacy with counseling literacy, the curriculum arrangement should be adjusted from freshman

year to the second semester of sophomore year or the first semester of junior year, so that students can learn another subject

while being equipped with a basic understanding of counseling and consultation. Basic professional knowledge provides the

foundation for cross-field integrated learning. Both teachers and teaching assistants must have basic knowledge and literacy in

cross-fields, rather than just focusing on a single field. Regarding the course design, teachers can first implement lessons from

previous courses. Through inquiry and practical teaching, students’ basic understanding of AI and counseling can be developed.

In subsequent classes, course content on the cross-field connection between AI and counseling can be delivered. Finally,

students create a theme report. The ability to learn step-by-step and integrate new learnings with previous learnings at the end of

the course will empower students to ideate about cross-field applications.