Formative assessment in artificial integrated instruction: delving into the effects on reading comprehension progress, online academic enjoyment, personal best goals, and academic mindfulness

This paper investigates the effects of formative assessment (FA) via artificial intelligence (AI) on EFL students’ reading comprehension development, online academic enjoyment, personal best goals (PBGs), and academic mindfulness. To achieve this, 80 Kuwaiti students were selected through convenience sampling and divided into the experimental group (EG) and the control group (CG). Pretests were conducted to assess the initial levels of the dependent variables. The EG received AI-based instruction through the Nearpod platform, while the CG received traditional face-to-face instruction. Both groups were taught ten reading passages, and post-tests were administered to measure reading comprehension progress, online academic enjoyment, PBGs, and academic mindfulness. ANCOVA test results revealed significant differences between the post-tests of the EG and CG, with the EG showing superior performance across all measures. These findings suggest that AI-based formative assessments can substantially enhance students’ academic and psychological outcomes, providing valuable insights for EFL instructors and material designers. Future research should explore the long-term effects of AI-based learning tools in diverse educational settings.