AI in Digital Education: A Review

Abstract

The explosive growth of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has not only reshaped the social value of ”knowledge” and ”learning,” but intensified structural anxieties behind the sharp decline in higher education enrollment rates. Through quantitative analysis and thematic clustering methods, this study systematically reviewed 167 relevant papers between 2017 and 2025. Six research topics were highlighted: Educational Technology, Digital Literacy and AI, Teacher Education, Personalized Learning, Teacher Role Transformation, and Educational Equity and Ethics. The analysis identified research trends in AI in Digital Education, with in-depth exploration of typical applications including AI-driven personalized learning content recommendation systems, automated grading systems, automated evaluation and feedback mechanisms, learning analytics and re-recommendation systems, and conversational virtual tutors. Furthermore, the study identified challenges in AI applications within digital education and outlined future development directions for this field. It provides evidence for universities to redefine the value of education under the background of dealing with the double pressure of declining birth rate and online substitution.