Title: Exploring the effects of artificial intelligence tools on the essay-writing skills of higher secondary students

Authors: Smitha Iyanna Pattada

Addresses: German Embassy School, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Abstract: Current developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) have led to debates about whether the use of AI tools in the classroom could be beneficial to student learning. This study aimed to investigate whether AI tools could impact the essay-writing skills of English as a Second Language (ESL) students studying at the higher secondary level, in terms of improving their creativity, originality and overall language skills. The study adopted a qualitative data collection method involving analysis of written samples: essays by six higher secondary school students. Comparisons were made between essays written with and without the use of AI tools, to gauge if essay-writing skills showed improvement with the use of AI. A survey was also conducted among six language teachers, to examine their perceptions towards the use of AI tools by students. The study found that, although there was an improvement in the overall language development and structural organisation of the essays when AI was used, there were no improvements in terms of creativity or originality. These findings imply that the use of AI tools for essay writing results in clear benefits for ESL students, in terms of enhancing their language proficiency.

Keywords: AI tools; language acquisition; higher secondary school students; ESL; chatbots; independent critical thinking; essay writing.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSMARTTL.2024.142178

International Journal of Smart Technology and Learning, 2024 Vol.4 No.1, pp.76 - 94

Received: 27 Aug 2023
Accepted: 25 Dec 2023
Published online: 11 Oct 2024 *

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