Aug 2026· Journal of Education and Training Studies· Vol 15, pp. 27· 0 citations· 33 references
TL;DR
Examination of how South African ODeL students describe and rationalise their use of large language model tools in academic writing indicates that students consistently frame paraphrasing as an ethical practice aligned with institutional expectations, even when their engagement with AI involves varying degrees of automation.
Abstract
The integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools in higher education is reshaping academic writing practices, particularly within Open and Distance e-Learning (ODeL) contexts marked by uneven digital access and emerging forms of AI support. This study examines how South African ODeL students describe and rationalise their use of large language model tools in academic writing, with specific attention to paraphrasing as a cognitive and ethical practice. Drawing on sociocultural learning theory, discourse theory, and AI and verification literacy frameworks, the study conceptualises paraphrasing not merely as textual rewording but as a discursive practice through which students negotiate authorship, responsibility, and academic legitimacy. Using a qualitative interpretive design, open-ended responses from 70 students enrolled in mathematics-related modules at a South African ODeL institution were analysed. The findings indicate that students consistently frame paraphrasing as an ethical practice aligned with institutional expectations, even when their engagement with AI involves varying degrees of automation. These accounts suggest that ethical engagement with AI is enacted discursively through self-positioning rather than through demonstrable verification of content. By foregrounding student discourse, the study contributes to Global South scholarship on responsible AI use by highlighting how integrity, authorship, and learning are negotiated in AI-mediated ODeL environments.
The study highlights the importance of integrating AI into ESP instruction through pedagogically sound practices supported by ethical guidance and digital literacy by providing context-specific insights that can inform the design of responsible, effective, and ethically grounded AI-enhanced ESP instruction.
D. Zulaiha, Yunika Triana· Journal of Educational Manag...· 0 citations
First-year university students’ perceptions of generative AI in academic work are investigated, foregrounding student agency in a Global South context and offering pedagogical and policy implications for responsible AI adoption.
Sharifuzzaman, M. Rahman· Asian Journal of Contemporar...· 0 citations
The rapid emergence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools has significantly transformed academic writing practices in higher education. While AI technologies offer potential support for language learners, they also raise concerns regarding academic integrity and the erosion of students’ critical thinking, particularly in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classrooms where writing development and independent reasoning are core learning outcomes. This study explores Saudi TESOL teachers’ strategies for balancing AI use with academic integrity and critical thinking in Saudi higher education. Using a qualitative research design, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 EAP instructors at four Saudi universities. Data were analysed thematically to identify and interpret patterns of AI use and academic integrity challenges across participants’ responses. A tripartite framework integrating sociotechnical systems theory, academic integrity scholarship, and critical thinking pedagogy provides a theoretical lens for understanding teacher-mediated AI integration in TESOL contexts. Thematic findings revealed that teachers hold an optimistic yet cautious view of AI highlighting the critical role of guidance and reflection in AI-mediated environments. They employ an emergent, four-dimensional Connect–Guide–Reflect–Assess (CGRA) pedagogical framework to manage the tension between AI and integrity in language classrooms. They demand a shared responsibility between teachers and institutions through clear and consistent AI policies for curriculum, assessment and faculty professional development. This study contributes empirical, practitioner-generated evidence of how TESOL teachers in the Saudi context navigate AI in EAP classrooms. Grounded in participants’ accounts, the proposed CGRA framework offers language educators, curriculum designers, and institutional policymakers a replicable approach for navigating the AI era.
The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into English language learning marks a significant pedagogical shift, yet its implications for secondary-level learners in resource-constrained contexts remain underexplored. This study examines how secondary students in semi-urban Nepal perceive AI tools—ChatGPT, Google Translate, Deep Seek, and Gemini—through the lens of Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), asking whether AI functions as a scaffold that enhances linguistic competence or a crutch that erodes autonomy. Using a phenomenological design, data were collected from twenty-three purposively selected students through semi-structured interviews, analyzed via Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis. Findings reveal a dual role: AI extended students' capacities within the ZPD through instant feedback, corrective support, and confidence-building, yet simultaneously fostered dependency, superficial engagement, and academic dishonesty when used without guidance. Students navigated this tension by critically evaluating AI outputs, adapting them to local context, and relying on teacher mediation to ensure ethical use. Persistent infrastructural inequality further constrained equitable engagement across participants. The study underscores teachers' indispensable mediating role in transforming AI from a shortcut into a genuine scaffold, and calls for structured AI literacy, teacher training, and equity-oriented policy to support responsible integration in under-resourced English language classrooms.
Mahadev Devkota, Nabaraj Neupane· Eureka: Journal of Education...· 0 citations
The research outcomes demonstrate that AIAS functions effectively as a learning architecture, aligning academic integrity with instructional design, and offers a replicable model for fashion programs and other disciplines seeking responsible AI integration.
D. Shen· PUPIL International Journal...· 0 citations
The adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in academic writing has been widely discussed in terms of its impact on writing performance and efficiency, with little attention given to how students actively negotiate its place in process-oriented pedagogies. To fill this gap, this paper investigates how university students negotiate autonomy, ethical responsibility, and cognitive engagement in the context of integrating AI into a Process-Based Approach (PBA) to academic writing. A qualitative-dominant mixed-method design was used. Data were collected from 103 students from eight universities in Indonesia using four Likert-scale questionnaires and open-ended responses, and analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Findings suggest that AI is perceived as a form of cognitive support for lower-order writing processes, such as grammar, vocabulary, and idea generation, while students aim to retain control. However, support also produces tensions of overreliance, reduced critical participation, and challenges to academic integrity. Students are beginning to understand the ethical limits, especially when it comes to AI being a tool that helps them with their own writing rather than replacing it. The findings indicate that AI-mediated writing is not only a matter of tool use but a site of negotiation, in which learners negotiate efficiency, autonomy, and authenticity.