ChatGPT is used by 51% of university students regularly and is perceived as effective for academic tasks while also presenting challenges related to critical thinking, academic honesty, and overreliance.
Objective: This study aimed to investigate the impact of generative AI usage on student outcomes, analyze usage patterns of ChatGPT, and highlight the challenges and advantages of integrating ChatGPT in higher education.
Methods: The research employed a descriptive survey method with a sample of 354 graduate and postgraduate students from Government Sadiq College Women University Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Data was collected through a self-structured, closed-ended questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS software. The analysis included descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, and one-way ANOVA to examine relationships between ChatGPT usage and academic performance, as well as faculty-wise usage patterns.
Key Findings:
- 51% of students use ChatGPT regularly, with the highest usage among Social Sciences students, followed by Arts and Humanities, Management Sciences, and least in Natural Sciences.
- 89% of respondents agreed that ChatGPT is useful for educational purposes, and 87.6% believed AI tools like ChatGPT will become common in the future.
- Students perceived ChatGPT as beneficial for quickly completing academic tasks (81.4%), providing personalized tutoring (72%), offering 24/7 accessibility (72.6%), and providing alternative approaches to problems (85%).
- Challenges identified include privacy concerns (54.8%), decreased critical thinking (67.8%), academic dishonesty risks (63.3%), and limitations in student exploration capabilities.
- Despite concerns, students reported that ChatGPT improved their critical thinking abilities (72.4%), content idea generation (75.4%), vocabulary and grammar skills (77.7%), intellectual ability (77.7%), and language skills (77.1%).
- A moderate positive correlation (0.389) was found between ChatGPT usage and perceived opportunities, while a weak to moderate positive correlation (0.295) was found between usage and challenges.
- There was a weak negative correlation (-0.041) between ChatGPT usage and academic performance, suggesting minimal direct impact on performance.
Implications: The study demonstrates that despite concerns about overreliance and academic integrity, ChatGPT has significant potential to enhance educational outcomes when used appropriately. The findings suggest the need for balanced integration of AI tools in education, with proper guidance to maximize benefits while mitigating risks. The study also highlights the importance of addressing digital divides, as 10% of participants had no internet access, limiting their ability to use AI tools.
Limitations: The study was limited to students from one university in Pakistan, which may affect the generalizability of the findings. The self-reported nature of the questionnaire could introduce response biases. Additionally, the study did not include a control group for comparison, making it difficult to establish causal relationships between ChatGPT usage and academic performance.
Future Directions: The researchers recommend integrating ChatGPT into curriculum activities to improve academic writing, research, and text production. They suggest providing professional training to educators on ethical and effective utilization of ChatGPT and developing activities that foster critical thinking while using AI tools. Future research should evaluate the long-term effects of ChatGPT on educational outcomes and student development across various educational settings and geographies.
Title and Authors: "Use of ChatGPT and Generative AI in Higher Education: Opportunities, Obstacles and Impact on Student Performance" by Sualeha Zafar, Farzana Shaheen, and Javaria Rehan.
Published On: October 28, 2024
Published By: iRASD Journal of Educational Research (Volume 5, Number 1, 2024, Pages 01-12)
The research provides a comprehensive overview of how university students perceive and utilize ChatGPT, highlighting both its potential benefits and challenges in educational settings. The authors frame their study within several theoretical perspectives, including technological determinism, social learning theory, symbolic interactionism, and constructivist theories, to understand how AI tools like ChatGPT may impact learning processes.
The theoretical framework suggests that while ChatGPT may transform traditional educational frameworks by providing personalized instruction and readily available resources, it might also hinder collaborative learning opportunities and reduce social modeling crucial for developing leadership and teamwork skills. The constructivist perspective emphasizes that overreliance on AI could impede cognitive development, critical thinking, and creativity.
The study's findings contribute significantly to understanding the integration of AI in higher education, especially in regions where such research has been limited. The researchers fill a gap by providing statistically significant insights into AI usage habits among university students and their perceptions of how these tools impact their learning outcomes. This information can guide educational institutions and policymakers in developing appropriate strategies for AI integration in educational settings.