Effects of AI-Assisted Instructional Design Reflection on Pre-Service Teachers' Technological Self-Efficacy and Critical Thinking: An Empirical Study

This study aims to explore the impact of AI-assisted instructional design reflection on pre-service teachers' technological self-efficacy (TSE) and critical thinking. The research combined quantitative and qualitative methods and involved an experiment with 51 pre-service teachers from two classes. The results showed that: (1) there was no significant improvement in TSE and critical thinking for high-level students (p = 0.390), while students at the good and developing levels showed significant improvement (p < 0.05); (2) AI's support functions better meet the needs of students at the good and developing levels for complex tasks; (3) high-level students may be more inclined to rely on their existing abilities rather than external support, which could affect their improvement with AI assistance. The findings suggest that AI-assisted instructional design reflection can effectively enhance TSE and critical thinking across different levels of students, with particularly significant benefits for lower-level students.