IRANIAN AND IRAQI PROFESSORS’ PERSPECTIVES ON AI LITERACY: EVIDENCE FROM TEFL AND NON-TEFL DISCIPLINES

Abstract

Informed by the call for further research on AI in recent years, the researchers in the current investigation sought to probe the degree of AI literacy among Iranian and Iraqi TEFL and non-TEFL professors. To gather data, the adapted AI questionnaire developed for the study was administered to a total of 120 Iranian and Iraqi university professors. Also, one-sixth of the participants (20 professors) were invited to take part in the interview. The findings revealed that though both Iranian and Iraqi TEFL and non-TEFL professors judged their AI literacy to be high, some differences were pinpointed between the way Iranian and Iraqi participants perceived their AI literacy. Also, as the qualitative findings indicated, a range of different AI use purposes were referred to by the respondents, such as hunting for research topics, finding relevant sources, and requesting paper summaries and article highlights. Moreover, as regards AI needs, the professors’ urgent call for ongoing, focused and systematic training and workshops was the most prominent issue. Finally, concerning the perceived challenges, lack of equal access to AI tools, the danger of academically dishonest behavior and misuse of AI were underscored by most interviewees. The implications of findings are discussed throughout the paper.