The impact of AI grammar assistants on the writing competencies of EFL learners in Ecuador

Abstract

Learning to write in English as a foreign language requires multiple skills and is considerably more challenging than learning to read and speak English. For this reason, this study analyzed the positive aspects and drawbacks of using ChatGPT and Grammarly to better understand writing processes among Ecuadorian native speakers as second-language learners. Specifically, the study examined 30 adult beginning-level EFL learners, aged 50 to 60, at a public school in Yaruquí, Ecuador. The study sought to determine whether using these tools over a four-week classroom intervention would help improve writing, add to writers' confidence levels, and also strengthen their everyday use of the English language. To achieve this objective, a mixed-methods research instrument was designed, which included pre- and post-writing performance tests along with a semi-structured focus group, as a means of understanding subjects' attitudes and perceptions toward writing assistance tools. By combining these two data-collection approaches, quantitative testing and qualitative focus-group interviews, the research was able to examine both the improvements shown in the assessment results and the students' personal experiences. Results showed a statistically significant improvement in grammatical accuracy, with the error rate falling by more than half between the pretest and posttest, and most participants reported that the tools were easy to use, helped correct their mistakes, and increased their writing confidence.