Abstract
This study employs an exploratory netnographic research approach to explore how educators in K-12 and higher education settings publicly engage with artificial intelligence (AI) on TikTok as a professional learning network, with an emphasis on supporting students with disabilities. Using deidentified, publicly accessible video data, 209 videos were qualitatively coded, and statistical analysis of thematic coding frequencies identified five overarching themes. These included: (1) AI as a Pedagogical and Productivity Tool for Educators, (2) AI for Personalization, Inclusion, Access, and Student Support, (3) AI Literacy, Ethics, and Societal Implications, (4) AI in the Workforce and Skill Development, and (5) AI Tool Demonstrations. The findings explore ways in which educators and students, especially those in secondary and higher education environments, are using TikTok as an informal professional learning network where AI tools, ethical considerations, and inclusive practices are shared and debated, contributing to emerging scholarship at the intersection of AI, special education, and digital educator culture. These insights and findings aim to better understand how educators and students develop shared knowledge in AI in algorithmically mediated public spaces.
Keywords
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
