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Description
The rapid emergence of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and automated writing assistants like Grammarly is reshaping language learning practices and redistributing power within the classroom. In exam-oriented English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts, particularly IELTS preparation courses, these tools increasingly function as alternative sources of feedback traditionally provided by teachers. This study explores how AI-mediated writing support influences power relations among teachers, learners, and technology in IELTS writing instruction.
The research adopts a small-scale mixed-method design involving Vietnamese EFL students enrolled in an IELTS preparation course. Participants completed writing tasks with three feedback conditions: teacher-only feedback, AI-generated feedback, and a hybrid AI–teacher model. Quantitative analysis evaluates changes in writing quality, while semi-structured interviews examine students’ perceptions of authority, trust, and autonomy in the feedback process.
Preliminary findings suggest that AI tools partially decentralize teacher authority by positioning AI as a parallel evaluator, while simultaneously fostering learner autonomy and faster revision cycles. The study argues that effective integration of AI in language education requires critical AI literacy and pedagogical frameworks that help learners evaluate and negotiate AI-generated feedback rather than passively accept it.
Keywords: language assessment, AI-assisted tools, language education
