Best for
Lesson 2 and 3 discussion, ethics circles, think-pair-share, debate preparation, and paragraph responses where students must justify a judgement.
Unit 7 AI Ethics • Years 8-11 • Discussion and writing • Print-ready
AI Ethics Scenarios
Use these dilemmas to help ākonga move beyond instant opinions. Students identify who is affected, weigh risks and benefits, and justify what should happen next when AI systems shape school, community, and cultural life.
Free ethics dilemmas, premium local adaptation
Run these scenarios as written, then use Te Wānanga if you want school-specific, iwi-specific, or younger-reader versions built around your context.
- Swap in local school, sports-club, workplace, or marae situations.
- Generate junior and senior versions of the same dilemma.
- Turn the discussion into an assessed speech, article, or recommendation memo.
Kaiako planning snapshot
- Use length: 20-30 minutes for one scenario, or 45-60 minutes for a full rotation and report-back.
- Grouping: Small groups work best because students have to test and defend their judgement aloud.
- Prep: Decide whether you want one shared scenario, rotating stations, or a written response task.
- Differentiation: Support learners can focus on one scenario deeply; extension learners can compare two responses and propose a policy.
- Teaching move: Keep pulling students back to who is affected, who decides, and what a better next step would actually be.
Resources already provided
- Four AI ethics scenarios grounded in school and public life
- Decision questions and te ao Māori values prompts
- Recommendation writing scaffold
- Teacher-only curriculum companion
What to print: one sheet per student or group. If you want a written output, add lined paper or have students use the recommendation box as a planner first.
Ngā Whāinga Akoranga / Learning Intentions
- We are learning how to judge AI dilemmas using fairness, evidence, and responsibility.
- We are learning how to identify who benefits, who may be harmed, and who should be consulted.
- We are learning how te ao Māori values can guide technology decisions in Aotearoa.
Paearu Angitu / Success Criteria
- I can explain the main issue in a scenario clearly.
- I can identify at least one harm, one benefit, and one missing perspective.
- I can justify a next step that is safer, fairer, or more culturally responsible.
Curriculum integration / Te Marautanga alignment
This handout supports evidence-based discussion, ethical judgement, and social inquiry about how digital systems shape people, communities, and responsibilities.
Good ethics discussion asks better questions
AI ethics is not only about whether a tool works. It is about whether the decision is fair, who holds authority, what data is used, and whether the people most affected have been treated with care and respect.
Ask these questions every time
- Who gains from this technology use?
- Who is exposed to extra risk, bias, or surveillance?
- What data or knowledge is being used, and who should control it?
- What would manaakitanga, kaitiakitanga, rangatiratanga, or tika ask us to do here?
Scenario 1: AI monitoring in school
A school is offered an AI tool that watches corridor footage and predicts “risky behaviour”. Leaders say it will make the school safer. Some students worry it will unfairly target particular groups and normalise surveillance.
Main issue
Who should be consulted before any decision?
Scenario 2: AI summarising Māori knowledge
A class uses an AI tool to summarise a Māori concept for an assignment. The summary sounds confident but flattens tikanga, ignores iwi context, and treats the concept as generic public information.
What harm could this cause?
What would a better response involve?
Scenario 3: AI hiring shortlist
A local employer uses AI to rank applicants and create a shortlist. They claim it is fairer than human judgement because it is “objective”. Workers later notice that some groups rarely make the shortlist.
Why is “objective” not enough?
What safeguard would you require?
Scenario 4: Deepfake “joke” post
A student uses AI to generate an image and caption imitating a teacher, then posts it as a joke. It spreads quickly and some people believe it is real.
What harm can happen even if the creator says it was “just for fun”?
What would a restorative response look like?
Recommendation scaffold
My decision and why
Prompt: State what should happen next, who needs to be involved, and what principle matters most in your judgement.
Teach this tomorrow
Print / share
- This scenarios sheet
- One highlighter or sticky-note pack per group
Decide before class
- Whether each group does one scenario or rotates across all four
- Whether students report back orally or write a formal recommendation
Look for by the end
- Students can move beyond “good/bad” into justified decisions
- Students can name affected groups and workable protections clearly
Hononga Marautanga · Curriculum Alignment
Digital Technologies — Hangarau Matihiko
Level 4–5: Apply ethical reasoning to real-world digital scenarios; evaluate trade-offs in AI design and deployment; recognise how values and culture shape what counts as a fair or unfair outcome.
Social Sciences — Tikanga ā-Iwi
Level 3–4: Understand how technology shapes relationships, power, and identity within communities; evaluate the impacts of digital innovation on society and culture.
Aronga Mātauranga Māori
In tikanga Māori, utu (reciprocity) and manaakitanga (care for others) provide ethical principles that predate and outlast any algorithm. When students work through AI ethics scenarios, they can ask: Does this AI system uphold manaakitanga — does it genuinely serve the people it touches? Does it honour utu — does it return something of value without taking more than it gives? These are not abstract questions: they are tools for evaluating AI systems in real Aotearoa contexts.
Ngā Rauemi Tautoko · Support Materials
- AI Ethics and Bias (ai-ethics-and-bias.html) — conceptual reading to prepare for these scenarios
- AI Bias Lab Activity (ai-bias-lab-activity.html) — hands-on testing that grounds these scenarios
- AI News Analysis (ai-news-analysis.html) — real-world cases that connect to scenario themes
- Teacher Discussion Guide (unit-7-teacher-discussion-guide.html) — kaiako facilitation support
Curriculum alignment
- Digital Technologies — Progress Outcome: Students understand how digital systems store, represent, and transmit data and consider the ethical implications of digital technologies on society.
- Digital Technologies — Progress Outcome: Students can identify and describe the key components of digital systems and how they interact.