AI Adoption Among Teachers: Insights on Concerns, Support, Confidence, and Attitudes

arXiv cs.AI / 5/4/2026

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Key Points

  • A study on 260 teachers in the Philippines finds that institutional support significantly improves both teachers’ confidence in AI and their attitudes toward adopting AI in education.
  • Although concerns were examined as a potential moderator, teacher concerns did not significantly change (moderate) how institutional support affects confidence or attitudes.
  • A mediation analysis shows that teacher confidence fully mediates the relationship between institutional support and attitudes, meaning support works mainly by building confidence.
  • The research recommends structured, ongoing institutional support—such as professional development, mentoring, and AI integration in teacher education—to strengthen readiness for effective AI adoption.
  • Overall, the findings suggest that confidence-building interventions are likely more impactful than focusing on reducing teacher concerns alone.

Abstract

The study examines the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in education by analyzing the roles of institutional support, teacher confidence, and teacher concerns. It aims to determine whether teacher concerns moderate the relationship between institutional support and two outcomes: teacher confidence and attitudes toward AI adoption. The sample included 260 teachers from the Philippines. Composite scores were calculated for institutional support, confidence, concerns, and attitudes. Moderated multiple regression analysis showed that institutional support significantly predicted both teacher confidence and attitudes toward AI. However, teacher concerns did not significantly moderate these relationships. A follow-up mediation analysis tested whether confidence explains the effect of institutional support on attitudes. Results showed full mediation. The indirect effect was significant based on the Sobel test, and the direct effect became non-significant when confidence was included in the model. This shows that institutional support improves teacher attitudes by increasing their confidence. The study recommends that institutions provide structured and ongoing support to strengthen teacher confidence. Professional development, mentoring, and AI integration in teacher education programs can increase readiness and support effective AI adoption.