Toward Human-Centered AI Literacy in Education: A Systematic Literature Review of Ethical Challenges and Teachers' Pedagogical Readiness

Abstract

The burgeoning development of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) has profoundly transformed global educational systems while simultaneously creating complex ethical and pedagogical challenges. This study aims to systematically examine AI literacy in education by focusing on the ethical challenges and pedagogical readiness of teachers in responding to AI integration within learning environments. The study employed a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) approach guided by the PRISMA protocol to ensure transparency, rigor, and replicability in the literature selection process. The findings reveal that the most dominant ethical concerns involve academic integrity, algorithmic bias, and data privacy, whereas teachers’ pedagogical readiness remains largely concentrated on technical AI utilization rather than transformative AI-based pedagogy. The literature synthesis further indicates a substantial competency gap between technological proficiency and teachers’ reflective-ethical capacity to critically and responsibly employ AI in educational practices. This study underscores that AI literacy should not be narrowly conceptualized as a technical skill; rather, it must be understood as an integrative competence encompassing digital capability, ethical awareness, and adaptive pedagogical readiness. The implications of this study highlight the urgency of developing teacher education curricula grounded in Human-AI Collaboration to foster adaptive, humanistic, and sustainable education in the era of digital transformation.