Are They Literate on ChatGPT? University Language Students’ Awareness, Benefits and Challenges in Higher Education Learning

This study explored university language students’ usage, awareness, readiness, and concerns, as well as the perceived benefits and challenges of utilizing ChatGPT in higher education learning. An explanatory sequential mixed-method design was used in this study, combining an online survey and semi-structured interview. The respondents consisted of 355 undergraduate and postgraduate students from various disciplines of five universities in Indonesia. The findings reveal that a majority of students had been using ChatGPT for their learning purposes, especially for writing assignments. The findings also highlight that those university language students had a high level of awareness, readiness, and concerns of using ChatGPT for their academic activities. Additionally, students acknowledged the potential benefits for writing support, personalized learning, increased productivity, brainstorming for generating ideas, and additional resources. However, challenges regarding inaccuracy, lack of critical thinking, plagiarism and AI detection, and technical problems. These findings provide a nuanced understanding of how university language students utilize and perceive ChatGPT for their learning purposes.