ESL Teachers’ Perceptions about ChatGPT as a Threat to Analytical Writing Abilities of ESL Learners at Graduate Level

Abstract

This study is aimed at exploring the perceptions of ESL teachers about ChatGPT as a detriment to analytical writing skills of graduate students. Since the inception of ChatGPT, an AI-powered tool, the argumentative and critical thinking skills of ESL learners are adversely affected. Analytical writing skill is an essential and valuable academic skill that a learner needs to master. The study is descriptive quantitative in nature with a closed-ended questionnaire as a research tool. Data comprises of a purposive sample of 30 ESL teachers from various public sector universities of Pakistan. Data is analysed via SPSS version 25 where tables are drawn to represent the statistical findings. Results of the study conclude that incorporation of ChatGPT has become a challenge in ESL classrooms because learners have become prone to malpractices of generating content from ChatGPT and plagiarising the subject matter. Consequently, analytical writing skills of ESL students are deteriorating. Theoretical underpinnings of the study are based upon TPACK framework by Mishra and Koehler (2006). The study a recommends institutes to ensure strict plagiarism policies to avoid malpractices of copy-pasting. Moreover, the study recommends ESL teachers to incorporate classroom tasks in order to promote creative ideation among learners.