An empirical study on the effects of AI-generated feedback on English writing

Abstract

The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of AI-generated writing feedback and investigate students' preferences between AI and teacher feedback. The research involved 270 college first-year students in an eight-week quasi-experimental design and weekly surveys. The results indicate that AI-generated feedback did not result in superior linguistic progress among students compared to those who received teacher feedback. Findings also reveal a near even split in preference for AI-generated or teacher feedback, with clear advantages to both feedback forms. The study implies that AI-generated feedback can be incorporated into writing evaluations. We recommend a blended approach that utilizes the strengths of both forms of feedback.