A cross-disciplinary probe into the status of AI literacy among Persian and Iraqi TEFL and non-TEFL students

The outgrowth of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in recent years has led researchers in different disciplines to explore more deeply how AI has transformed our personal, social, and academic lives. The need for conducting such studies on AI is especially significant in less privileged contexts and in third-world and developing countries, such as Iran and Iraq. Inspired by the paucity of research on AI, particularly the lack of cross-disciplinary investigations, the researchers in the current study aimed to determine the level of AI literacy among Iranian and Iraqi TEFL and non-TEFL university students. To conduct the study, an adapted version of an AI scale was distributed among 160 university students from both contexts. In the qualitative phase, one-fifth of the participants (32 students) agreed to participate in semi-structured interviews. The interview consisted of three questions addressing the purposes, needs, and challenges related to AI use. Data analysis revealed that Iraqi students, on average, perceived themselves as having a higher degree of AI literacy than their Iranian counterparts, with this difference being more prominent among TEFL students. Additionally, qualitative findings indicated that students viewed AI tools as primarily useful for providing appropriate feedback, facilitating personalized, self-regulated learning, and assisting with research-related issues. The perceived AI needs from students’ perspectives included easy and equitable access to AI tools and proper training on their technical use. Challenges identified by participants included unethical use of AI tools, difficulty accessing AI, and culturally insensitive applications of AI devices. The findings offer valuable implications for both TEFL and non-TEFL students and instructors in Iranian and Iraqi academic contexts regarding the effective use of AI technology.