Creating Space for EFL Teachers’ Engagement with AI: A Nudge-Based Experimental Study

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Friday 11:45am
  In Poster Session: AERA Division K Section 6 In-Service Educators - Poster Session 3

Abstract

As AI becomes embedded in education policy, the adoption of such technologies by teachers is increasingly driven by policy demands rather than individual choice. The study aims to explore non-coercive pathways to initiate teacher participation in AI adoption under policy-driven conditions. Drawing on Nudge Theory, this study conducts a randomized controlled trial involving 138 middle school English teachers in eastern China. The results show that nudge interventions can effectively activate AI usage by providing a low-risk space for tentative exploration. This study provides causal evidence that, amid increasingly institutionalized AI adoption, nudging may serve as a non-coercive strategy facilitating teacher participation in reform.
Keywords: AI, Nudge Theory, RCT, Technology Adoption

Authors

• Jiani Rong, East China Normal University

• Shuangye Chen, East China Normal University