ChatGPT as an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Writing Assistant for EFL Learners: An Exploratory Study of its Effects on English writing Proficiency

ChatGPT, a revolutionary Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool, has taken the world by storm after its release by OpenAI in 2022. Many researchers have attempted to explore what role ChatGPT can play as an AI assistant in teaching and to what extent ChatGPT can be utilized for English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. The present study made exploratory efforts in shedding lights on the effect of applying ChatGPT as an AI Writing Assistant in English writing classroom for EFL learners. The research was conducted with 51 EFL learners divided into a control group (n=25) and an experimental group (n=26). The control group was given traditional in-class instruction and after-class activities, while the experimental group was encouraged to use ChatGPT during pre-writing stage and after-writing stage for content planning, personized interaction and tailored feedback. To avoid misuse of this AI tool, students are encouraged to do the drafting on their own. During the experiment (a duration of 10 weeks), writing tasks were employed to collect available data. It was found that the experimental group exhibited better writing proficiency in terms of content, structure and language use, compared with that of the control group. Overall, this research highlights the potentiality of ChatGPT as a valuable AI tool for EFL learners to improve English writing proficiency.