A new open-access systematic review in ETR&D maps where AI is genuinely helping instructional designers — and where human judgment still leads.
Ask almost anyone in our field how their work has shifted over the past two years, and the conversation turns quickly to artificial intelligence. But beyond the headlines and the hype, what does the evidence actually tell us about AI's role in instructional design?
A new open-access systematic review in Educational Technology Research and Development (ETR&D) — AECT's flagship research journal, published in partnership with Springer Nature — offers one of the clearest pictures yet. In "The intersection of artificial intelligence and instructional design practice: a systematic review," researchers Pınar Nuhoğlu Kibar and Hale Ilgaz synthesize 28 studies published between 2020 and 2025 to examine how AI is being used across the instructional design (ID) process.
Their central finding reframes the whole conversation. Across the reviewed studies, the authors write, "AI was not only regarded as a tool but was also conceptualized as a co-worker, collaborator, and partner within the instructional design process." In other words, the field is moving from asking what can this tool do? to asking how do we work alongside it?
A field still finding its footing
The review describes a discipline in transition — shifting, in the authors' words, "from a linear, human-driven process into a dynamic, collaborative ecosystem that merges computational power with human creativity and pedagogical expertise."
It is also a young area of study. Of the 28 studies analyzed, 17 were published in 2025 alone, a signal of just how quickly this work is accelerating. One detail close to home: among the journals represented in the review, AECT's own TechTrends appeared most frequently — a reminder of how central our community is to this emerging conversation.
Where AI is genuinely helping
The most consistent benefit the review identified has little to do with flashy content generation. It is the quieter work of administrative and repetitive tasks — monitoring student progress, grading, and providing feedback — cited in 18 of the 28 studies. By taking on routine work, AI lets designers "reallocate cognitive resources toward deeper pedagogical planning and reflection."
Beyond that, the studies pointed to AI's value in sparking inspiration and idea generation, supporting instructors' professional growth, and enabling more data-driven design decisions. Notably, AI showed up most often as a support for the thinking work of design — analyzing learner needs, structuring instruction, aligning materials with objectives — rather than simply producing finished media.
Where human judgment still leads
The review is just as clear about AI's limits. The single most cited challenge was pedagogical alignment — the difficulty of ensuring AI-generated outputs actually match instructional goals — noted in exactly half the studies. The most cited limitation was content reliability: inaccurate, fabricated, or outdated information from systems the authors describe, citing prior research, as something of a "black box."
Designer readiness, inconsistent trust in AI's suggestions, and the hidden workload of iterative prompting all surfaced as real friction points. And while AI proved useful for divergent thinking — brainstorming and generating alternatives — the studies found it offered limited scaffolding for convergent thinking and higher-order learning.
A useful map: AI across the ADDIE cycle
For practitioners, one of the review's most actionable insights is how AI use maps onto the familiar ADDIE model. The authors found AI is "most evident in the Analysis, Design, and Development phases" — analyzing learner needs, generating and refining content, supporting pedagogical decisions — but "less visible in the implementation and evaluation phases."
That is a helpful prompt for any design team: AI may give you a running start on the front end of a project, but implementation and evaluation still call for a distinctly human hand.
What this means for our community
Perhaps the most reassuring takeaway is also the most practical. The review concludes that AI "functions as an augmentative rather than a replacement technology, with human expertise remaining essential for interpreting, refining, and contextualizing machine-generated content." One study captured the spirit nicely: teachers preferred AI to act as "an extra pair of eyes" — offering suggestions and flagging issues — while they retained final control.
The implications shift depending on your role. For instructional designers, AI tends to support alignment, consistency, and design quality. For educators who design as part of their teaching, it more often supports lesson planning, content adaptation, and differentiation. In every case, the studies agree that AI works best "when AI-generated outputs are actively reviewed, adapted, and contextualized, rather than being used directly."
That is a hopeful message for our field. The professional judgment, pedagogical reasoning, and creativity that instructional designers bring are not being automated away — they are becoming more important than ever.
Read the full study
Since 1923, AECT has been the professional and intellectual home for the field of educational technology. Research like this — the kind published in our two signature journals, TechTrends and Educational Technology Research and Development (ETR&D), in partnership with Springer Nature — is how our community continues to lead the global study and application of new technologies for learning. And it's a benefit our members enjoy firsthand: every AECT membership includes full access to both signature journals, along with a wealth of additional AECT journals, books, and publications in our Reference Library.
Have thoughts on AI as a design partner? We would love to hear how it is reshaping your practice. Join the conversation with the AECT community.
Reference: Nuhoğlu Kibar, P., & Ilgaz, H. (2026). The intersection of artificial intelligence and instructional design practice: a systematic review. Educational Technology Research and Development. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-026-10624-z
About the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT)
AECT is an international organization that values diversity of thought, culture, and people whose activities are directed toward improving learning. AECT members may be found in colleges and universities; in the Armed Forces and industry; in museums, libraries, and hospitals; and in other settings where educational change takes place. AECT members include instructional designers, researchers, professors and teachers, educational technologists, and other professionals united by a passion for improving teaching and learning with technology.