Unveiling AI Literacy: User Competences and Perceptions of Pre-Service Teachers

Abstract

Artificial intelligence has been widely adopted and used by both teachers and learners for several purposes in language education. However, at first, teacher candidates are required to be qualified in AI literacy in order to nurture and cultivate the success of their future learners, thereby further improving language education. Therefore, there is a need to identify whether they are ready for AI-infused education, at which points they are (in)competent, and what they need in training regarding AI literacy, specifically in relation to their domain-specific contexts. Then, this study aimed to analyze to what extent teacher candidates are AI literate in terms of awareness, usage, evaluation, and ethics, and explore how they perceive and experience AI in teaching/learning. Based on the convergent mixed-methods-design, this study collected data from 104 pre-service ELT teachers. As the research instruments, scale and open-ended questions were employed through Google Forms. The analysis revealed a moderate level of AI literacy overall. It also indicated the restricted AI ability to integrate, critical evaluation, and ethical use. Although awareness was high, AI tool repertoire and knowledge were very limited. Moreover, AI was used more for educational purposes compared to daily life, and despite some challenges, perceived it as beneficial. Since AI is considered as the future, the pre-service teachers explicitly stated a need for AI training compatible with their professional competence and practices. Hence, this study demonstrates the requirement of AI training in teacher education programs to foster various competences of AI literacy.