ChatGPT and Writing Skills: The College of Education Experience

Abstract

Writing skills are essential for academic success and communication. With the rise of technologies like AI language models (ChatGPT), their impact on academic writing is still unclear. There is ongoing debate about both the potential benefits and the risk of misuse for academic dishonesty. This descriptive-correlational study determined the impact of ChatGPT on the level of writing skills, assess perception, ChatGPT usage and the problems encountered of the English Students. Sixty students at Mindanao State University-Lanao del Norte Agricultural College, completed self-administered Questionnaires and their responses were analyzed using statistical package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Results indicated that the intervention (ChatGPT) applied in Experimental Group was effective in enhancing their writing skills compared to the traditional methods used with the control group. The study also found that the highest-rated statement, “ChatGPT can enhance writing essays” (3.13), The most used feature is “How often do you use ChatGPT to generate outlines for your writing tasks?”  (3.10 and the highest-rated issue is “I have difficulties in improving my writing skills” (2.76). Based on the findings of the study, exposure to ChatGPT significantly improves respondents' writing skills, Frequent use of ChatGPT positively correlates with improved writing skills, indicating its potential as a learning enhancement tool. Thus, productive use of ChatGPT into their academic writing is recommended while minimizing its negative impact.