A Participatory Strategy for AI Ethics in Education and Rehabilitation grounded in the Capability Approach

2025-05-21

AI Summary

This study addresses the prevalent “deficit-compensation” logic in AI applications for special education and rehabilitation. It proposes a participatory AI co-design framework grounded in the Capability Approach—an ethical framework centered on expanding individuals’ substantive freedoms and functionings. Through the ARTIS project, educators, therapists, children with diverse needs, and their families collaboratively engaged in focus groups and co-design workshops, integrating educational neuroscience insights and explainable AI (XAI) interface techniques to develop an AI-augmented text comprehension support tool. Its key contribution lies in being the first systematic integration of the Capability Approach into AI ethics practice in education, establishing an ecological, multi-stakeholder AI governance pathway that prioritizes functional expansion over deficit remediation. The resulting replicable participatory AI ethics implementation paradigm significantly enhances technological appropriateness, inclusivity, and human-centered value—shifting AI’s role from instrumental empowerment toward holistic capability development.

Technology Category

• Humans and AI: AI for Accessibility
• Philosophy and Ethics of AI: Bias, Fairness & Equity
• Natural Language Processing: Ethics — Bias, Fairness, Transparency & Privacy

Application Category

• Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: Fairness and ethical considerations in crowd work and in human-in-the-loop AI systems
• Responsible Web: Machine-in-the-loop, human agency and autonomy
• User Modeling, Personalization and Recommendation: Accountability, Transparency, and Ethics for personalization

Abstract

AI-based technologies have significant potential to enhance inclusive education and clinical-rehabilitative contexts for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. AI can enhance learning experiences, empower students, and support both teachers and rehabilitators. However, their usage presents challenges that require a systemic-ecological vision, ethical considerations, and participatory research. Therefore, research and technological development must be rooted in a strong ethical-theoretical framework. The Capability Approach - a theoretical model of disability, human vulnerability, and inclusion - offers a more relevant perspective on functionality, effectiveness, and technological adequacy in inclusive learning environments. In this paper, we propose a participatory research strategy with different stakeholders through a case study on the ARTIS Project, which develops an AI-enriched interface to support children with text comprehension difficulties. Our research strategy integrates ethical, educational, clinical, and technological expertise in designing and implementing AI-based technologies for children's learning environments through focus groups and collaborative design sessions. We believe that this holistic approach to AI adoption in education can help bridge the gap between technological innovation and ethical responsibility.

Problem

• Developing ethical AI for inclusive education and rehabilitation
• Addressing challenges in AI usage with participatory research
• Integrating Capability Approach for inclusive learning environments

Innovation

• Participatory research strategy with stakeholders
• Capability Approach for ethical AI design
• AI-enriched interface for text comprehension