Conversational AI in Education: A General Review of Chatbot Technologies and Challenges

The integration of AI-powered chatbots into educational contexts has accelerated rapidly over the past decade, offering scalable and personalized learning solutions.This study follows PRISMA process to synthesize findings from over 40 empirical and theoretical works published between 2017 and 2025, providing a systematic evaluation of the role of chatbots in formal education.A keyword-based word cloud analysis identifies dominant themes such as "student," "engagement," "AI," and "dialogue," reflecting a pedagogical shift toward AImediated, learner-centered environments.The results reveal that chatbots are increasingly leveraged for formative assessment, virtual tutoring, and administrative support, particularly in higher education, albeit with varying degrees of success.It comprehensively analyzed the selected studies and identified six significant research gaps.The paper also explores future directions, emphasizing the need for multilingual, multimodal, and ethically governed chatbot systems that integrate emotional intelligence and culturally sensitive content.Despite the growing market for educational AI and its demonstrated potential, significant challenges persist-ranging from digital access gaps to the absence of standardized evaluation frameworks.The study concludes by offering policy and design recommendations to ensure that chatbot technologies enhance, rather than hinder, equitable and meaningful learning.