Topic: Technology and Innovation | ChatGPT as a reflective partner
Presenter: Plamen Kushkiev
Presentation details
As generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) chatbots become more powerful, sophisticated, and prevalent, it is essential that English language teaching (ELT) educators develop their critical AI literacy (CAIL) in the context of their teaching practices. In this presentation, the speaker will first discuss his rationale for conducting an autoethnographic study in his English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classes at two Canadian community colleges.
Data were generated from the researcher’s learning journal as well as his regular and nuanced interactions with ChatGPT, which he utilised to gain a deeper understanding of his pedagogical decisions and co-constructing assessments with the learners. The researcher employed the thematic analysis method, taking a constructionist perspective to configure themes out of the narrative and make sense of theories and concepts that guided his analytical reflections.
After conceptualising the complex construct of CAIL based on current scholarship, the presenter will outline three main research results of this narrative inquiry. The critical engagement with the themes allowed the researcher to (re)conceptualize CAIL in his teaching context, adapt his approach to formative assessments as learning, and engage adult learners as collaborators. Approaching ChatGPT as a differently knowledgeable other and reflective partner, the presenter will discuss several transferable implications for the teaching realisations of language and adult educators interested in enhancing their teaching performance and fostering learner engagement.
The participants will be encouraged to share their understanding and definitions of CAIL through a polling platform and interactions in the chatbox. They will reflect on crafting teaching approaches to create more human-focused learning experiences and empower learners as collaborators and knowledge co-creators in AI-enhanced ELT classrooms.
About the presenter
Dr. Plamen Kushkiev is a Canadian college professor, researcher, and SoTL Scholar Award recipient. Dr. Plamen has a doctorate in higher education from the University of Sheffield, UK, and is currently a professor of English for Academic Purposes at Centennial College in Toronto, Canada. He has published and presented internationally on ELT teacher identity, GenAI in education, and professional development.
Dr. Plamen’s research has explored the affordances of GenAI chatbots to enhance teaching performance and learner engagement through critical AI literacy lenses.