Learner autonomy stands on the top priorities of scholars due to its pivotal role in fostering student-centered learning methods. It empowers the learners to be in charge of their learning process and be the center of attention in language learning education. For this purpose, different AI tools were used and implemented in pedagogy to narrow the divide in promoting learning/teaching approaches. This study aims to gauge the impact of using LLM-ChatGPT to teach EFL learners the present simple tense autonomously via providing automated feedback, and chances for regular drillings without over reliance on teacher. It also aims to investigate the EFL learners’ perception of using LLM-ChatGPT as a reinforcement approach to learner autonomy. A cohort comprising 50 EFL learners would participate in the study and a between subject design method using control and experimental groups would be implemented. The findings of the study indicated that learners who were taught present simple tense’s rule through using LLM-ChatGPT application, with less teacher’s dominance, scored grades similar to those who were taught the same tense’s rule by the teacher (sage on the stage approach). This substantiates the idea that LLM-Chat GPT acts a role akin to teachers in teaching grammatical rules. Moreover, the learners felt that LLM-ChatGPT application had a positive impact on fostering autonomous learning.
References
[1]
Riley, P. (2009) An Adult Attachment Perspective on the Student-Teacher Relationship & Classroom Management Difficulties. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25, 626-635. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2008.11.018
[2]
LeCun, Y., Bengio, Y., and Hinton, G. (2015) Deep Learning. Nature, 521, 436-444. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14539
[3]
Alrabai, F. (2016) Factors Underlying Low Achievement of Saudi EFL Learners. International Journal of English Linguistics, 6, 21-37. https://doi.org/10.5539/ijel.v6n3p21
[4]
Holec, H. (1981) Autonomy and Foreign Language Learning. Pergamon Press.
[5]
Little, D. (2011) Language Learner Autonomy: What, Why and How? Proceedingsof the Oman International ELT Conference, Seeb, 20-21 April 2011, 187-205.
[6]
Nunan, D. (1995) Closing the Gap Between Learning and Instruction. TESOL Quarterly, 29, 133-158. https://doi.org/10.2307/3587808
[7]
Mynard, J. and Sorflaten, R. (2002) Independent Learning in Your Classroom. IL Sig, TESOL Arabia.
[8]
Littlewood, W. (1996) “Autonomy”: An Anatomy and a Framework. System, 24, 427-435. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(96)00039-5
[9]
Al-Saadi, H.M. (2011) From Spoon Seeding to Self-Feeding: Helping Learners Take Control of Their Own Learning. Arab World English Journal (AWEJ), 2, 95-114.
[10]
Aragao, R. (2011) Beliefs and Emotions in Foreign Language Learning. System, 39, 302-313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2011.07.003
[11]
Cotterall, S. (1995) Readiness for Autonomy: Investigating Learner Beliefs. System, 23, 195-205. https://doi.org/10.1016/0346-251X(95)00008-8
[12]
Kern, R.G. (1995) Students’ and Teachers’ Beliefs about Language Learning. Foreign Language Annals, 28, 71-92. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.1995.tb00770.x
[13]
Navarro, D. and Thorton, K. (2011) Investigating the Relationship between Belief and Action in Self-Directed Language Learning. System, 39, 290-301. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2011.07.002
[14]
Horwitz, E.K. (1988) The Beliefs About Language Learning of Beginning University Foreign Language Students. The Modern Language Journal, 72, 283-294. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.1988.tb04190.x
[15]
Kartchava, E. and Ammar, A. (2014) Learners’ Beliefs as Mediators of What Is Noticed and Learned in the Language Classroom. TESOL Quarterly, 48, 86-109. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.101
[16]
Haque, M.M., Jaashan, H.M. and Hasan, M.Z. (2023) Revisiting Saudi EFL Learners’ Autonomy: A Quantitative Study. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 17, 845-858. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2023.2166512
[17]
Kung, T.H., Cheatham, M., Medenilla, A., Sillos, C., de Leon, L., Elepaño, C., Tseng, V., et al. (2023) Performance of ChatGPT on USMLE: Potential for AI-Assisted Medical Education Using Large Language Models. PLOS Digital Health, 2, e0000198. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pdig.0000198
[18]
Brown, T., Mann, B., Ryder, N., Subbiah, M., Kaplan, J.D., Dhariwal, P., Amodei, D., et al. (2020) Language Models Are Few-Shot Learners. Advances in Neural Information Processing Systems, 33, 1877-1901.
[19]
Ouyang, L., Wu, J., Jiang, X., Almeida, D., Wainwright, C., Mishkin, P., Lowe, R., et al. (2022) Training Language Models to Follow Instructions with Human Feedback. Advances in Neural Information Processing Systems, 35, 27730-27744.
[20]
Cotton, D.R., Cotton, P.A. and Shipway, J.R. (2024) Chatting and Cheating: Ensuring Academic Integrity in the Era of ChatGPT. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 61, 228-239. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2023.2190148
[21]
Baidoo-Anu, D. and Ansah, L.O. (2023) Education in the Era of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI): Understanding the Potential Benefits of ChatGPT in Promoting Teaching and Learning. Journal of Artificial Intelligence, 7, 52-62. https://doi.org/10.61969/jai.1337500
[22]
Yang, Z. (2019) XLNet: Generalized Autoregressive Pretraining for Language Understanding. arXiv preprint arXiv:1906.08237.
[23]
Radford, A., et al. (2019) Language Models Are Unsupervised Multitask Learners. OpenAI Blog, 1.8: 9.
[24]
Thanasoulas, D. (2000) What Is Learner Autonomy and How Can It Be Fostered? Internet TESL Journal, VI, 1.
[25]
Guo, C., et al. (2023) Can ChatGPT Boost Artistic Creation: The Need of Imaginative Intelligence for Parallel Art. IEEE/CAA Journal of Automatica Sinica, 10, 835-838. https://doi.org/10.1109/JAS.2023.123555
