Exploring the Effectiveness of Teachers' Professional Development Activities on AI Integration in English Language Education: A Case Study

This study examines the impact of EFL teachers' professional development activities on the integration of AI tools in teaching and learning. A mixed-methods approach, combining a questionnaire survey and focus group discussions, was used in the current study, which aimed to address the following research questions: (a) To what extent have teachers incorporated AI tools into their teaching practices after attending professional development sessions? (b) How significantly have EFL teachers' professional development training on AI integration contributed to enhancing student engagement in classroom participation across various language skills? The results indicate that the professional development activities on AI integration were instrumental in helping teachers focus on utilising AI tools to optimise student engagement in English language learning tasks. However, it was also found that students' motivation levels sometimes declined as AI overshadowed the task of achieving language production. The study has implications for stakeholders and policymakers to recognise the urgent need for an AI-driven pedagogical approach. It also proposes several necessary recommendations to enhance teachers' professional development activities, aiming to boost AI literacy and innovative technology in English Language Teaching and to bring about positive changes in the planning and implementation of future Teacher Professional Development (TPD) projects.