AI Literacy in STEAM Education: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Artificial Intelligence (AI) literacy has emerged as a critical 21st-century competence, yet its integration within interdisciplinary STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education remains fragmented. This study addresses this gap by investigating how AI literacy is conceptualized, implemented, and evaluated within STEAM learning environments. Following the PRISMA guidelines, a systematic literature review was conducted on empirical studies published between 2015 and 2025 to examine pedagogical approaches, methodological designs, AI technologies, and arts disciplines. An analysis of 32 studies revealed key insights into the development of AI literacy within STEAM education: (1) AI literacy is most often fostered through active and interdisciplinary learning rather than through lecture-based instruction alone, (2) AI serves both as a subject of study and as a tool for learners to create, design, investigate, and solve problems, (3) arts integration in AI-STEAM education typically support broader learning objectives and less frequently is assessed as distinct learning outcome, (4) ethical and societal aspects of AI literacy receive less attention than technical and computational skills, (5) the predominance of non-formal settings, short interventions, and context-specific studies indicates limited evidence on long-term progression, scalability, and sustained outcomes. The review contributes to the emerging field of AI-STEAM education by mapping empirical research from the past decade and developing two analytical tools: a five-cluster framework for learning objectives and a four-cluster framework for arts integration in AI-STEAM education. It concludes with a multi-level synthesis that identifies key educational and technological implications for the design, implementation, and future development of the field.