The first generation of students is learning to program alongside GenAI (Generative Artificial Intelligence) tools, raising questions about how young learners critically engage with them and perceive ethical responsibilities. While prior research has focused on university students or developers, little is known about secondary school novices, who represent the next cohort of software engineers. To address this gap, we conducted an exploratory study with 84 German secondary school students aged 16-19 attending software development workshops. We examined their critical thinking practices in AI-assisted programming, perceptions of AI ethics and responsibility, and gender-related differences in their views. Our results reveal an AI paradox: students demonstrate strong ethical reasoning and awareness about AI, yet many report integrating AI-generated code without a thorough understanding of it. The majority of our cohort attributed significant responsibility for AI practices to politics and corporations, potentially reflecting Germany's cultural context, with its strict regulations and data privacy discourse. Boys reported more frequent and experimental use of AI-assisted programming, whereas girls expressed greater scepticism and emphasised peer collaboration over GenAI assistance. Our findings highlight the importance of culturally responsive software engineering education that strengthens critical AI literacy in AI-assisted programming by linking ethics to concrete code artefacts and preparing young learners for this AI-driven software landscape.

翻译：第一批学生正在伴随生成式人工智能（GenAI）工具学习编程，引发了关于年轻学习者如何批判性地使用这些工具并理解伦理责任的问题。以往研究多聚焦大学生或开发者，而对中等学校初学者——即下一批软件工程师群体——的了解尚不充分。为填补这一空白，我们对84名年龄在16至19岁、参加软件开发工作坊的德国中学生开展了一项探索性研究。我们考察了他们在AI辅助编程中的批判性思维实践、对AI伦理与责任的认知，以及性别相关的观点差异。结果揭示了一个AI悖论：学生表现出强烈的伦理推理能力和对AI的意识，但许多人报告称在未完全理解的情况下就整合了AI生成的代码。我们的大多数参与者将AI实践的主要责任归于政治界与企业界，这可能反映了德国严格监管与数据隐私讨论的文化背景。男生更频繁、更实验性地使用AI辅助编程，而女生则表现出更多怀疑，并强调同伴协作优于GenAI辅助。研究结果凸显了文化响应式软件工程教育的重要性——通过将伦理与具体代码产物相联结，强化AI辅助编程中的批判性AI素养，并为年轻学习者应对这一AI驱动的软件格局做好准备。