The use of ChatGPT as a learning tool to improve foreign language writing in a multilingual and multicultural classroom

Abstract

The association of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and education has attracted researchers’ attention, as it is very beneficial for learners affecting the whole teaching procedure. ChatGPT, an AI language model developed by OpenAI and based on the Generative Pre-trained Transformers (GPT)-3.5 architecture, though newly introduced in November 2022, became very popular even within the first two months. Researchers have already explored and acknowledged the affordances of ChatGPT for language learning and teaching. In this context, the study aimed to examine the effectiveness of ChatGPT as a feedback tool on foreign language writing, especially for socially vulnerable populations, such as refugees/migrants, who face extra language difficulties. The study was conducted in a Junior High School (Gymnasium) classroom in an urban city in south Greece, which consisted of 8 students with a migrant/refugee background aged 15 years old who were attending German as a foreign language learning. The focus of the study was to analyze how the use of ChatGPT could improve foreign language writing in terms of vocabulary and grammar. After the students' first writing attempt, we asked ChatGPT to enhance the vocabulary and grammar of the texts. In contrast, the students received an improved version in terms of language and grammar, and then, they were asked to produce another writing piece of work on a similar topic to their first attempt. The study results indicated an increase in the total number of words, the unique words and the average word number per sentence in the improved version of their work. Overall, the study results were promising, indicating that ChatGPT could act as a language learning tool and support the teaching procedure, especially for students with a refugee/migrant background. However, further research is needed to investigate its use and effectiveness in diverse contexts.

The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Enhancing EFL Writing Skills among High School Students

“…The significant increase in task achievement, coherence and cohesion, and lexical resource underscores the role of AI in bolstering core writing competencies, which is consistent with the hypotheses proposed by previous research (e.g., Cheong & Hong, 2023;Domenech, 2023). Furthermore, the significant improvement in grammatical range and accuracy, despite an unexpected mean score decrease, suggests that while students may have been challenged by more complex grammatical structures, their overall ability to use grammar correctly in context has improved (Faiz et al, 2023;Athanassopoulos et al, 2023). This nuanced finding indicates that while AI tools can provide effective grammatical instruction, their application may need to be supplemented by traditional teaching methods to cover more complex aspects of grammar.…”

“…The advent of AI in education, as explored by Mohamed (2023) and Mohammad Ali (2023), has brought forward the potential benefits and challenges of AI-based Chatbot (ChatGPT) in EFL teaching, emphasizing faculty and teacher perspectives. Athanassopoulos et al (2023) further expand this view by demonstrating ChatGPT's utility in multilingual and multicultural classrooms, highlighting its adaptability and effectiveness across diverse educational landscapes.…”

“…The automated feedback provided by AI tools on grammar and syntax can help learners identify and correct errors, leading to improvements in grammatical accuracy and range. This aspect is particularly crucial in EFL contexts where learners need to master the complexities of English grammar (Faiz et al, 2023;Athanassopoulos et al, 2023).…”

Utilizing M-Technologies for AI-Driven Career Guidance in Morocco: An Innovative Mobile Approach

“…Another related challenge is the accuracy of Arabic optical character recognition (OCR) tools. Since a sizable portion of the information needed to guide students is contained in PDFs and other text-based resources, OCR errors could potentially limit the effectiveness of the chatbot [29].…”

“…To ensure effective responses to students' guidance requests, robust data-safeguard measures should be implemented. These measures should be designed to protect students' academic records and personal information, which are necessary for the AI-oriented system to provide personalized guidance [29].…”