From Resource Seekers to Resource Creators: Pakistani ESL Teachers’ Experiences and Insights on Using ChatGPT

Abstract

Technological advancement has transformed every area of activity and education is no exception. Education has significantly benefitted from different technological tools be it digital devices, internet access, and ICT. However, the rise of artificial intelligence, especially generative AI, has the potential to empower the teacher in ways not seen before. In the context of ELT (English Language Teaching), the lack of culturally appropriate and tailor-made learning material has been a persistent challenge facing teachers and students. This study explored the ability of ChatGPT to help teachers overcome this issue and generate useful and relevant lesson plans with learning material to address their students’ needs effectively. A workshop was designed and conducted to teach prompt engineering to 21 teachers enrolled in the English Language Teaching Methods course at the MPhil level at a Pakistani private university. The teachers were then asked to design lesson plans with accompanying learning material. These lesson plans and instructional materials were evaluated for cultural appropriateness and relevance to students’ needs. In addition, the teachers wrote a reflective account of their experience using ChatGPT after the training and also participated in a focus group discussion to share their views. The findings indicated that Chat GPT is a powerful tool that enabled teachers to realize their ideas and create relevant and useful material, as well as detailed lesson plans containing guidelines for implementation. Hence, this study recommends that Chat GPT be introduced as a capable materials developer, whose potential can only be unlocked through effective prompt engineering.