Can Generative AI support the learning agency of students with disability? A case study of an Australian secondary school

Natasha Anne Rappa; Karen P. Nonis; Kok Sing Tang; Grant Cooper; Martin Cooper; Craig Sims

doi:10.1111/bjet.70048

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Can Generative AI support the learning agency of students with disability? A case study of an Australian secondary school

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Can Generative AI support the learning agency of students with disability? A case study of an Australian secondary school

Natasha Anne Rappa, Karen P. Nonis, Kok Sing Tang, Grant Cooper, Martin Cooper and Craig Sims

British journal of educational technology, Early View

2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.70048

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Abstract

Generative Artificial Intelligence

learning agency

learning disability

secondary school

Despite increasing interest in using Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in education, little is known about how students with disability engage with GenAI to support their own learning. This study investigates the potential of ChatGPT to support the learning agency of adolescents with disability in a secondary science classroom in Australia. Guided by sociocultural and socio-material conceptualisations of agency, the study explored the mediated choices and capabilities of three students with disability to use ChatGPT to facilitate their learning. The study was conducted in a class comprising students of varying ages clinically diagnosed with diverse learning needs. Data sources included student interviews, the students' conversations with ChatGPT, teachers' lesson worksheets and video recordings of the lesson. Thematic analyses reveal that while students expressed clear and meaningful choices to use ChatGPT to support their learning, they faced metacognitive challenges and cognitive constraints, resulting in a misalignment between their choices and actual capability. The findings identify key theoretical perspectives and practical considerations for supporting students with disability in using GenAI to develop their learning agency. The study recommends customising GenAI for specific learning needs in line with its function as a cognitive prosthesis for students with disability and for better alignment with Universal Design for Learning, thereby supporting students' learning agency.

Details

Title: Can Generative AI support the learning agency of students with disability? A case study of an Australian secondary school
Authors/Creators: Natasha Anne Rappa - Murdoch University, School of Education
Karen P. Nonis - Curtin University
Kok Sing Tang - Curtin University
Grant Cooper - Curtin University
Martin Cooper - Curtin University
Craig Sims - Curtin University
Publication Details: British journal of educational technology, Early View
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Educational Research Association.
Number of pages: 19
Grant note: Curtin University of Technology (http://data.elsevier.com/vocabulary/SciValFunders/501100001797) School of Education Curtin University
Identifiers: 991005857588007891
Murdoch Affiliation: School of Education
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article

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Collaboration types: Domestic collaboration
Citation topics: No Topic Assigned; No Topic Assigned; No Topic Assigned
Web Of Science research areas: Education & Educational Research
ESI research areas: Social Sciences, general