Muhammad Nurtanto, Mustofa Abi Hamid, Abdul Wahab, Nur Kholifah, Willson Gustiawan, Hani Subakti
The emergence of new tech paradigms such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) raise an essential concern in the field of education; over reliance on such technologies might impede the sharpening of students' analytical and critical thinking skills, and as such, the development of natural competences - skills acquired through reasoning, problem-solving, and physical practice done manually without the assistance of AI, will be lost. The role of AI in education is indisputable, but this is the first study at this level of research that tries to identify the role AI plays in capturing the value of vocational education, where practical skills are essential. The research aims to identify the disadvantages that students face in environments with heavy reliance on AI and how teachers are trying to mitigate these disadvantages. In addition, this research will examine the practices of schools with and without AI devices, focusing on gender differences. A qualitative case study approach was used, and data were collected from 11 purposively selected vocational teachers who were interviewed, as well as from observations and documents. Thematic analysis was done through open, axial, and generic coding. The principles of credibility, transferability, and confirmability guided the research. The findings of the study have established that unrestricted use of AI reduces the overall level of problem-solving and practical skills, whilst the use of regulations and teachers' pedagogical approaches encourages more balanced learning. Gender perspectives further enrich approaches to AI integration. In this case, the research is essential for teacher education because it presents practical suggestions on the development of policies that control and flexible pedagogical strategies to maximize the utilisation of AI while preserving the standards of vocational training. © 2025 IEEE.
Universitas Negeri Jakarta, Dept. of Technological and Vocational Education, Jakarta, Indonesia; Universitas Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa, Dept. of Electrical Engineering Vocational Education, Serang, Indonesia; Universitas Muslim Indonesia, Dept. of Statistics, Makassar, Indonesia; Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Dept. of Fashion Design, Yogyakarta, Indonesia; Politeknik Negeri Padang, Dept. of Business Administration, Padang, Indonesia; Universitas Widya Gama Mahakam, Dept. of Primary Teacher Education, Samarinda, Indonesia
