Enhancing EFL Adolescents’ Writing Skills Using AI

Abstract

This study employed a mixed-methods approach to examine the impact of automated written feedback using AI on the English writing skills of Korean high school students. The participants consisted of 32 students learning English as a foreign language (EFL) at a high school in Korea. Over eight weeks, students participated in a 60-minute weekly writing intervention. This intervention included English writing exercises, during which students received automated written feedback from AI tools, revised their drafts using AI tools, and reflected on their learning experiences. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through pre- and post-writing tests, questionnaires, weekly reflective comments, interviews, students’ AI prompts, and interaction records with AI. The results indicated significant improvement from the pre-test to the post-test, with notable gains in organization, grammar, vocabulary, and mechanics. However, no significant growth was observed in the content of the writing. Qualitative findings revealed that students did not utilize any prompts requesting feedback on the content of their writing, nor did their weekly comments indicate a focus on content development. The data also highlighted factors that facilitated or hindered students’ learning from the AI feedback process. This study provides pedagogical implications for the effective use of AI in EFL high school classrooms, emphasizing the potential benefits and limitations of automated feedback in supporting language development.