Humanizing Artificial Intelligence Integration in English as a Foreign Language Pedagogy through Love and Empathy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64850/polyglot.v1i2.80Keywords:
AI in education, Affective Teaching, EFL, Empathy, Ethical Technology, Humanizing Learning, Loving PedagogyAbstract
As artificial intelligence (AI) tools become part of daily teaching, questions arise about how teachers and learners can preserve emotional connection and ethical awareness in language classrooms. This study explored how EFL teachers and learners in Shiraz experience care, empathy, and human presence while using AI-supported tools. Guided by the framework of AI-informed Loving Pedagogy, it examined how both groups respond to the emotional and moral changes brought by digital mediation. Fifteen teachers and twenty learners participated in interviews and reflective journals over four weeks. Their narratives were analyzed thematically, leading to three main themes: Emotional Authenticity in Digital Interaction, Ethical Tensions and Affective Fatigue, and Reimagining Love through Technology. Results showed that both teachers and learners made conscious efforts to keep warmth and personal meaning alive in technology-rich settings. They often described a need to “sound human again” after AI-generated responses and felt torn between efficiency and emotional depth. Some also found new ways to express care through creative and ethical uses of AI. The findings suggest that love and empathy remain vital in digital pedagogy and can guide more ethical and sustainable AI use in language education. Teacher education should include emotional reflection and critical AI literacy to help educators design learning experiences that remain truly human-centered.
Downloads
References
Alonazi, W. B. (2020). The impact of emotional intelligence on job performance during COVID-19 crisis: A cross-sectional analysis. Psychology Research and Behavior Management, 749-757. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.2147/PRBM.S263656
Barjesteh, H., and Isaee, H. (2024). Is technology an asset? Enhancing EFL learners’ vocabulary knowledge and listening comprehension through CALL, International Journal of Research in English Education, 9(1), pp.50-69 [online] https://ijreeonline.com/browse.php?a_id=848andsid=1andslc_lang=fa
Barjesteh, H., Vijayaratnam, P., Fatehi Rad, N., Golkar Rafsanjani, M., Isaee , H., & Gholipour, H. (2025). Unraveling the Drivers of Teacher Exhaustion in Language Education: A Deep Drive into Internal and External Factors. Forum for Linguistic Studies, 7(3), 90–103. https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v7i3.8338
Crompton, H., & Burke, D. (2023). Artificial intelligence in higher education: The state of the field. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 20, 22. https:// doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00392-8
Crompton, H., & Burke, D. (2024). The educational affordances and challenges of ChatGPT: State of the field. TechTrends, 68(4), 380–392. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-024-00939-0
Crompton, H., Jones, M. V., & Burke, D. (2022). Affordances and challenges of artificial intelligence in K–12 education: A systematic review. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 55(2), 164–185. https:// doi. org/ 10.1080/15391523.2022.2121344
Derakhshan, A., & Fathi, J. (2024). Longitudinal exploration of interconnectedness through a cross-lagged panel design: enjoyment, anxiety, willingness to communicate, and L2 grit in English language learning. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1-19. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01434632.2024.2393705
Derakhshan, A., & Pawlak, M. (2025). An introduction to the special issue on innovative research approaches in the study of foreign language teachers’ and learners’ academic emotions. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1-7. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/01434632.2025.2467342
Dewaele, J. M., & Li, C. (2020). Emotions in second language acquisition: A critical review and research agenda. Foreign language world, 196(1), 34-49. https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/32797/3/32797.pdf
Fredrickson, B. L. (2013). Positive emotions broaden and build. In Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 47, pp. 1-53). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-407236-7.00001-2
Isaee, H., & Barjesteh, H. (2023). EFL teachers’ professional development needs: A comparative phenomenological analysis for face-to-face and online instruction. Journal of Studies in Learning and Teaching English, 12(2), 45-56. https://journals.iau.ir/article_705784_5628e1dd65c8fc95c5522f9059873041.pdf
Klemettilä, P. A. (2025). AI literacy as ‘a candle in the dark’: exploring critical perspectives towards artificial intelligence with children and youth (Master's thesis, PA Klemettilä). https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:oulu-202506194797
Laakso, M., Fagerlund, Å., Pesonen, A. K., Lahti-Nuuttila, P., Figueiredo, R. A., Karlsson, C., & Eriksson, J. G. (2021). Flourishing students: The efficacy of an extensive positive education program on adolescents’ positive and negative affect. International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology, 6(3), 253-276. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41042-020-00048-2
Li, C., Dewaele, J. M., & Jiang, G. (2020). The complex relationship between classroom emotions and EFL achievement in China. Applied Linguistics Review, 11(3), 485-510. https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/applirev-2018-0043/html
Loreman, T. (2011). Kindness and empathy in pedagogy. In Love as Pedagogy (pp. 15-31). Rotterdam: SensePublishers. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-6091-484-3_2
MacIntyre, P. D., & Mercer, S. (2014). Introducing positive psychology to SLA. Studies in second language learning and teaching, 4(2), 153-172. https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=79512
MacIntyre, P. D., Gregersen, T., & Mercer, S. (2019). Setting an agenda for positive psychology in SLA: Theory, practice, and research. The Modern Language Journal, 103(1), 262-274. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12544
Manoocherzadeh, M., Isaee, H., & Barjesteh, H. (2025). Artificial Intelligence in Project-Based Learning: A Systematic Review of Its Role in English Language Acquisition and Pedagogical Innovation. Indonesian Journal of Pedagogy and Teacher Education, 3(3), 81-91. https://ejournal.gomit.id/index.php/ijopate/article/view/502
Mercer, S., & Gregersen, T. (2023). Transformative positive psychology in the acquisition of additional languages. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1-16. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/01434632.2023.2194869
Oxford, R. L. (2016). Teaching and researching language learning strategies: Self-regulation in context. Routledge.
Peng, X. (2025). The contribution of artificial intelligence (AI) to Chinese EFL learners’ classroom engagement and active learning. Porta Linguarum An International Journal of Foreign Language Teaching and Learning, (XIII). DOI: https://doi.org/10.30827/portalin.viXIII.32420
Seo, K., Tang, J., Roll, I., Fels, S., & Yoon, D. (2021). The impact of artificial intelligence on learner–instructor interaction in online learning. International journal of educational technology in higher education, 18(1), 54.
Velander, J., Otero, N., & Milrad, M. (2024). What is critical (about) AI literacy? Exploring conceptualizations present in AI literacy discourse. In Framing futures in postdigital education: Critical concepts for data-driven practices (pp. 139-160). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-58622-4_8
Wang, N., & Kang, J. (2023). The role of teacher empathy and immediacy in Chinese EFL students’ affective learning outcomes: unveiling the associations. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1294891. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1294891
Wang, X. M., Hu, Q. N., Hwang, G. J., & Yu, X. H. (2023). Learning with digital technology-facilitated empathy: An augmented reality approach to enhancing students’ flow experience, motivation, and achievement in a biology program. Interactive Learning Environments, 31(10), 6988-7004. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10494820.2022.2057549
Wang, Y., Derakhshan, A., & Pan, Z. (2022). Positioning an agenda on a loving pedagogy in second language acquisition: Conceptualization, practice, and research. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 894190. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.894190/full
Wong, P. T. (2019). Second wave positive psychology’s (PP 2.0) contribution to counselling psychology. Counselling Psychology Quarterly, 32(3-4), 275-284. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09515070.2019.1671320
Yan, L., Sha, L., Zhao, L., Li, Y., Martinez‐Maldonado, R., Chen, G., ... & Gašević, D. (2024). Practical and ethical challenges of large language models in education: A systematic scoping review. British Journal of Educational Technology, 55(1), 90-112. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.13370
Zawacki-Richter, O., Marín, V. I., Bond, M., & Gouverneur, F. (2019). Systematic review of research on artificial intelligence applications in higher education–where are the educators?. International journal of educational technology in higher education, 16(1), 1-27. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/S41239-019-0171-0
Zhao, S., & Li, M. (2021). Reflection on loving pedagogy and Students' engagement in EFL/ESL classrooms. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 757697. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.757697/full
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Hossein Isaee, Hamed Barjesteh (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
