Abstract:

Generative AI is fundamentally transforming art education practice, yet it has so far been scarcely investigated empirically within the Austrian school context. This study closes that gap by providing an up-to-date assessment and systematically connecting art-educational, technical, and ethical perspectives through the „Frankfurt Dreieck“. What is new is the empirically grounded focus on AI-based image analysis and production in the classroom.

The aim of this paper is to identify the opportunities, challenges, and ethical implications of using AI in art education and to analyse how teachers integrate ecological, ethical, and pedagogical issues into their practice. In doing so, it lays the groundwork for reflective, responsible, and sustainable instructional design.

The research design follows a triangulating mixed-methods approach: an online survey captures usage patterns, attitudes, and challenges; qualitative interviews with teachers and students, as well as classroom observations, deepen the analysis and provide practice-oriented insights into AI-based image work. The study focuses on teachers and students in lower and upper secondary school art education in Austria. Its interdisciplinary potential lies in linking aesthetic education and media pedagogy in order to understand AI as an object of critical future-shaping.

Initial findings indicate that teachers increasingly use AI as a creative tool, while at the same time expressing considerable ethical, technical, and legal uncertainties. A clear need for further training in didactics, technology, and legal orientation is emerging. AI is perceived as having potential in the classroom, yet is critically contextualised.

The study demonstrates that the use of AI in art education requires a close integration of aesthetic, technical, and ethical competencies. At the same time, the findings underscore the importance of sustainability and bias reflection. The results therefore provide an empirical basis for didactic recommendations and for the responsible implementation of AI in school learning environments.

The paper addresses the central competency areas of the curriculum for Art and Design – Creative Practice, Perception and Reflection, and Visual Languages and Communication. It analyses how teachers use AI tools to address aesthetic, ethical, and societal aspects of digital image production. Additionally, the areas of Reflective Gender Education and Equality and Education for Sustainable Development are considered, particularly with regard to AI stereotypes and technological sustainability.

Keywords:

Artificial Intelligence, Art Education, Education for Sustainable Development, Digitalization, Media Pedagogy, Bias, AI Ethics in Art Education.