Advisers

Shirley A. Sablayan

Discipline

Education

Abstract

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has significantly impacted education, with Grade 11 and 12 students at St. Mary's College Inc., Quezon City, using it for tasks such as idea generation, reference searching, and productivity. However, AI use raises concerns about reduced critical thinking, unequal access, unclear accountability for AI content, and risks to academic integrity without proper guidance. Clear ethical guidelines are needed, and their effectiveness depends on students' understanding. This study examines how St. Mary's College Inc. implements ethical AI standards among its senior high school students. This study uses a qualitative design to examine Grade 11 and 12 students' perceptions of ethical AI guidelines. Data are collected through semi-structured face-to-face interviews with five senior high school students from St. Mary's College Inc., Quezon City, selected via purposive sampling. Interviews are held in the school library, recorded, and supported by notes. Participants are informed of the study's purpose, give consent, and confidentiality is ensured under the Data Privacy Act of 2012. Students recognized that AI ethical guidelines promoted responsible use, honesty, and independent thinking, but inconsistent application and reliance on AI checkers revealed a surface-level understanding. Many complied mainly to avoid penalties, and inconsistent enforcement across subjects caused confusion. Despite these challenges, the guidelines helped reduce AI dependence, improved understanding, and encouraged critical thinking. Students recommended clearer rules with examples, consistent enforcement, and practical workshops to strengthen ethical and responsible AI use. Students recognized AI ethical guidelines as important for promoting responsible use, honesty, and independent thinking. However, inconsistent application, stricter checks on research papers, and reliance on AI checkers showed a surface-level understanding. Senior high school students followed rules mainly to avoid penalties rather than for ethical reasons, and inconsistent enforcement across subjects caused confusion. While the guidelines helped reduce AI dependence, improved understanding, and fostered critical thinking, challenges such as varying detection results, peer influence, and time pressures remained. Students recommended clearer rules with examples, consistent enforcement, fair use of detection tools, and practical expert-led workshops to strengthen ethical AI use.

Keywords

senior high school students, artificial intelligence, ai in education, responsible ai use, academic integrity, qualitative research