Aug 2026· International Journal of Current Educational Studies· 0 citations
TL;DR
Investigating whether first-year university students perceive a loss of authenticity in their writing when assisted by AI finds that students value AI for reducing anxiety and improving grammatical accuracy, yet many express ambivalence about authorship and personal voice.
Abstract
Artificial intelligence tools are increasingly integrated into second language writing (L2) classrooms, offering immediate feedback and scaffolding. While their potential to enhance accuracy and fluency is widely acknowledged, concerns remain about how AI mediation affects learners’ voice and identity. This study investigates whether first-year university students perceive a loss of authenticity in their writing when assisted by AI. A mixed-methods explanatory convergent design was employed with twenty first-year Algerian university students enrolled in English writing courses at the Affiliate of Teacher Education College-Tebessa. A structured questionnaire was used to focus on perceptions of voice, identity, and ownership in AI-assisted texts. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, while qualitative responses were coded thematically to capture nuanced reflections on authenticity and cultural expression. Findings indicate that students value AI for reducing anxiety and improving grammatical accuracy, yet many express ambivalence about authorship and personal voice. Patterns suggest selective acceptance of AI feedback, with students often re-editing outputs to reintroduce their preferred style. The study highlights the dual role of AI as both an enabler and a potential suppressor of identity in L2 writing. These findings underscore the need for pedagogical strategies that encourage critical engagement with AI suggestions.
English as a Foreign Language (EFL) writing is inherently fraught with linguistic uncertainty, which frequently triggers anxiety and stifles learner motivation. While generative AI (GenAI) is increasingly adopted, current research predominantly treats these tools as text-generation shortcuts for final writing products, leaving the cognitive and affective mechanisms of multimodal GenAI as a process-oriented scaffold largely underexplored.
To bridge this gap, this study investigated the effects of a text-to-image (T2I) AI-supported visual narrative intervention on 78 EFL undergraduates' writing anxiety, motivation, and performance through an 8-week quasi-experiment. Specifically, the intervention required the experimental group to engage in an iterative cycle of text input, image generation, and prompt refinement to construct their drafts, whereas the control group employed traditional text-only drafting.
Quantitative results revealed that the experimental group exhibited significantly lower writing anxiety, alongside enhanced situational writing motivation and a modest but significant improvement in writing performance, compared to the control group. Qualitative thematic analysis of retrospective interviews indicated that, during the intervention, the T2I AI transformed linguistic uncertainty from a psychological threat into a gamified exploration, although the durability of this shift beyond the intervention period remains to be established. The immediate, non-judgmental visual feedback functioned as an autonomy-supportive scaffold, driving learners to notice the gap and autonomously engage in lexical risk-taking and syntactic refinement. However, as the intervention bundled visual feedback with AI immediacy and interactivity, the specific contribution of the visual modality warrants further investigation. This study contributes to reframing the understanding of uncertainty in GenAI-supported EFL writing and highlights the pedagogical affordances of leveraging multimodal AI as a collaborative, affective scaffold rather than a mere linguistic shortcut.
The proliferation of generative artificial intelligence (Gen-AI) in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) writing instruction has sparked considerable scholarly interest, yet the subjective experiences and voices of learners who engage with AI-generated feedback remain insufficiently explored within the extant literature. This qualitative study investigates students' voices concerning the implementation of Gen-AI feedback in an EFL writing classroom, specifically examining their perceptions, patterns of engagement, development of feedback literacy, and the inherent tensions between learner autonomy and technological dependency. Adopting a qualitative research design, data were collected through four focus group discussions involving 30 purposively selected undergraduate students enrolled in an EFL writing course at a private university in Surakarta. Thematic analysis of the transcribed discussions, conducted in accordance with Braun and Clarke's (2006) framework, yielded five interrelated themes: perceived usefulness of Gen-AI feedback, patterns of feedback engagement, development of feedback literacy, tension between autonomy and dependency, and emotional and ethical responses. The findings reveal that students perceived Gen-AI feedback as highly useful for enhancing writing quality, revision efficiency, and idea generation; however, they did not passively accept all AI-generated suggestions but rather demonstrated selective engagement, critically evaluating feedback based on its relevance to higher-order writing concerns, including content and organization. Additionally, participants reported developing feedback literacy over time, evidenced by increased awareness of their writing weaknesses and improved capacity to interpret and strategically utilize AI feedback. Nevertheless, uneven development across participants indicated that feedback literacy does not emerge automatically through mere exposure to Gen-AI tools. A critical tension also emerged between learner autonomy and dependency, with several students expressing over-reliance on AI for revision tasks. Emotional and ethical responses included heightened confidence alongside scepticism regarding AI accuracy and concerns pertaining to academic integrity. The findings suggest that the pedagogical effectiveness of Gen-AI feedback is not determined solely by its technological affordances but is significantly mediated by learners' engagement, critical awareness, and feedback literacy. This study contributes to the literature by demonstrating that understanding students' voices is crucial for developing context-sensitive and pedagogically sound AI integration strategies, with implications for educators and curriculum designers seeking to implement Gen-AI feedback in effective, ethical, and learner-centred ways.
Abdul Ayiz, Ahmad Tauchid, Riyadh Ahsanul Arifin et al.· ETERNAL (English Teaching Jo...· 0 citations
How students and teachers in a Colombian university language program perceived GenAI-supported production was explored and four patterns emerged: GenAI as a rehearsal and revision partner; tension between polished output and language ownership; teacher mediation shifting toward critical language awareness; and the need for explicit ethical and assessment guidance.
Dionelio Jesus Moreno Villalobos· International Journal of AI...· 0 citations
The growing presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education has changed the way students approach academic writing. While AI-powered tools offer practical support in generating ideas, organizing texts, and refining language, their increasing use has also raised concerns about the originality and authenticity of students’ written work. This study aims to examine how AI influences students’ authentic academic writing skills and to identify the patterns of dependence that emerge during the writing process. A convergent mixed-methods design was employed by integrating quantitative data from questionnaires completed by 71 third-semester English education students in Makassar, Indonesia, with qualitative evidence drawn from fifteen empirical and conceptual studies published between 2024 and 2025. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the survey data, whereas thematic synthesis was applied to the literature findings. The results indicate that students rely on AI to varying degrees across different stages of academic writing. Five interrelated forms of dependence were identified, namely dependence on idea generation, language and text organization, revision and editing, cognitive and metacognitive processes, and writing autonomy. However, the findings suggest that AI is not inherently responsible for weakening students’ writing abilities. Instead, the erosion of authentic writing tends to occur when technological assistance replaces the reflective, critical, and self-regulatory processes that are central to academic writing. These findings underscore the importance of developing educational practices that encourage students to use AI responsibly while maintaining intellectual ownership and academic integrity.
Muhammad Yahrif, Suharti Sirajuddin, Muhamad Khaedar· Al Qodiri : Jurnal Pendidika...· 0 citations
S sustaining academic integrity in AI-mediated writing requires balancing technological innovation with ethical instruction, authentic assessment, and values formation, and the study concludes that sustaining academic integrity in AI-mediated writing requires balancing technological innovation with ethical instruction, authentic assessment, and values formation.
Jimboy Baldesco, Louie Mark G. Garvida· Psychology and Education: A...· 0 citations
This study investigates the linguistic, affective, and contextual barriers encountered by Libyan undergraduates when completing academic writing tasks in English and explains the factors underlying those barriers from the students’ perspective. A mixed-methods triangulation design was employed, Quantitative data were obtained through an online questionnaire completed by 56 fifth- to eighth-semester students, while qualitative data were generated through semi-structured interviews with 10 students, The survey showed strong recognition of the value of writing and a high motivation to improve; nevertheless, the participants reported substantial difficulties, The highest challenge endorsements concerned vocabulary and word choice (76.8%), revision and editing (76.8%), and clear and coherent expression (71.4%), The leading contributing factors were limited exposure to English outside the classroom (71.4%), difficulty organizing and expressing ideas (69.6%), and cultural-linguistic differences (67.9%), Interview findings corroborated the quantitative patterns and revealed an interaction among limited grammatical and lexical knowledge, first-language interference, academic formality, anxiety, fear of negative evaluation, inadequate feedback, restricted resources, and insufficient practice time, The study concludes that EFL writing difficulty is not a single linguistic deficit but a multidimensional system in which language knowledge, self-efficacy, instructional conditions, and opportunities for authentic use reinforce one another, It recommends an integrated process-genre curriculum, explicit language support within meaningful writing, self-regulated learning routines, sustained reading-to-write practice, and staged feedback combining teacher, peer, and carefully supervised automated support.
Safia Marimi· Al-Farooq Journal of Science...· 0 citations