ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE: RESULTS OF A REGIONAL SURVEY OF EDUCATORS IN MYKOLAIV REGION (UKRAINE)

Abstract

This research article presents an empirical analysis of how educators in Mykolaiv Region, Ukraine, engage with artificial intelligence tools in their professional practice. Set against the backdrop of accelerated digitalisation and the ongoing war, which together have fundamentally reshaped the conditions of schooling in the region, the study addresses the lack of empirical regional-level data on actual AI use in education. The research draws on a large-scale online survey conducted by the Mykolaiv In-Service Teacher Training Institute (MOIPPO) in March–April 2026, with a sample of 1,496 respondents representing all four administrative districts of the oblast. The survey explores the prevalence and intensity of AI tool adoption, the range of pedagogical tasks for which educators use AI, their self-assessed competence level, attitudes toward students' use of AI, and the key difficulties and challenges perceived in the integration process. The study pays special attention to the open-ended responses, which allow the reconstruction of the pedagogical discourse surrounding AI in the region – capturing practitioners' views on its potential, on the barriers they encounter in their daily work, and on the conditions under which AI can genuinely serve education rather than undermine it. Importantly, the research situates its findings within the broader normative context, including recent Ukrainian legislation on academic integrity that directly addresses AI use, and the growing international regulatory framework for artificial intelligence in education. The findings are intended to inform the design of targeted professional development programmes, the formation of institutional AI policies for schools, and further comparative research on AI adoption in education in Ukraine and in other countries affected by war.