Curriculum-embedded AI literacy: a mixed-method study of framework implementation in undergraduate management education

Abstract

This paper reports findings from a mixed-methods study examining the integration of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) literacy within an undergraduate Business Management programme. Drawing on Zhou and Schofield’s (2024) AI literacy framework, AI-integrated learning activities were embedded across each year of study to support four dimensions of AI literacy: ’Know and Understand’, ‘Use and Apply’, ‘Evaluate and Create’, and ‘AI Ethics’. Data collected through surveys and focus groups suggest that students perceived curriculum-embedded AI activities as supporting AI literacy development; however, outcomes varied. Year 1 students reported the strongest development in the Know and Understand dimension, while Year 2 students demonstrated greater development in Use and Apply, and in Evaluate and Create. Year 3 students continued to emphasise foundational understanding, highlighting the need for greater scaffolding of advanced competencies. Engagement with AI Ethics remained comparatively limited. The study demonstrates the importance of a strategic, curriculum-wide approach to AI literacy development.