CULTURO-TECHNO- CONTEXTUAL-AI FOR STEAM EDUCATION SUSTAINABILITY

Abstract

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into education has transformed global STEAM discourse, yet African and Global South systems face persistent challenges including inequitable access, cultural irrelevance, technological dependency, weak contextualization, and fragmented practices. Conventional AI-driven models often privilege Western-oriented, technologically deterministic approaches that marginalize indigenous knowledge systems and learners’ socio-cultural realities, thereby undermining meaningful learning, engagement, and sustainability. This theoretical paper conceptualizes the Culturo-Techno-Contextual Artificial Intelligence (CTCAI) Pedagogy as a transformative framework for equitable, culturally responsive, and sustainable STEAM education. Anchored on Constructivism, Social Constructivism, TPACK, CHAT, Connectivism, and Connectionism. CTCAI extends Professor Peter Okebukola’s Culturo-Techno-Contextual Approach (CTCA) by embedding AI within local languages, cultural practices, environmental conditions, and community-centred problem-solving. It positions AI as a culturally adaptive pedagogical partner that supports contextual intelligence, personalized learning, learner agency, ethical reasoning, creativity, and sustainability-oriented innovation, enabling students to become active co-creators who interrogate and culturally align AI outputs. The CTCAI STEAM Sustainability Model integrates indigenous knowledge, AI-supported learning, contextual problem-solving, and interdisciplinary collaboration to foster twenty-first-century competencies such as systems thinking, innovation, resilience, and transformative agency. Empirical evidence from CTCA studies shows significant gains in achievement, engagement, conceptual understanding, and emotional well-being. While acknowledging challenges like digital inequality, infrastructure gaps, algorithmic bias, and teacher preparedness, the paper recommends culturally responsive AI audits, localized datasets, multilingual systems, and community-driven reforms. Ultimately, CTCAI represents a paradigm shift toward decolonizing AI education, promoting technological sovereignty, and advancing SDG 4 through human-centred, culturally aligned, and sustainable development.