The rising application of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools like ChatGPT, Bing Chat, and Bard in language teaching and learning heralds a transformative era. Yet, the experiences and perspectives of university students on integrating these tools into their translation studies remain underexplored. This qualitative study, conducted in a research-intensive, Sino-foreign cooperative university in southern China, explored university students’ perceived benefits and challenges of utilizing GenAI in translation practices, as well as their preferred support mechanisms for addressing encountered issues. Data was collected through open-ended questionnaires and semi-structured interviews and analyzed by using reflexive thematic analysis. Results underscored the advantages of GenAI in enhancing translation efficiency, quality, learning, and practice, fostering a positive outlook and social benefits. Nevertheless, issues such as adequacy, prompt engineering efficacy, practical application, technical limitations, accountability, transparency, and potential AI dependency were noted. Beyond existing self-help strategies, there was an expressed need for additional guidance from educators and institutions. This study enriches our comprehension of how university students perceive and engage with GenAI tools in translation, offering insights for educators and academic institutions to optimize future teaching strategies. It also outlines the study’s limitations and proposes directions for subsequent research.

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools are transforming the field of language education. Recent studies indicated that English language teachers generally lacked the readiness and skills necessary to effectively and critically integrate these tools into their professional practices. This study employed a mixed-method interventional design to investigate the impact of integrating GenAI tools into a 12-week training course on the development of pre-service English language teachers’ GenAI literacy. 90 pre-service language teachers enrolled in a B.A. in English program at a university in southeastern China were recruited. The participants were divided into an experimental group (n = 45) and a control group (n = 45). Data was collected through a mixed-methods questionnaire and analyzed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and thematic analysis. The results demonstrated a significant improvement in the experimental group’s overall GenAI literacy and its five sub-dimensions following the 12-week intervention. The experimental group significantly outperformed the control group in the post-test, as evidenced by their GenAI literacy across all five sub-dimensions (overall GenAI literacy, p < 0.001; technical proficiency, p < 0.001; critical evaluation, p < 0.001; communication proficiency, p < 0.05; creative application, p < 0.001; ethical competence, p < 0.001). This study provides valuable insights for school leaders and program directors to integrate explicit GenAI literacy training into language teacher education programs. It emphasizes the necessity for language educators to engage in ongoing professional development focused on GenAI, ensuring that they stay updated with the latest GenAI advancements and their applications in language education.

The launch of ChatGPT has drawn public attention to the potential of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools due to its high accessibility and affordances. Many language teachers have attempted to integrate GenAI tools into their teaching practices. Although some Hong Kong secondary schools have started incorporating AI tools to teach science and technology-related subjects, schools integrating GenAI tools in language education are still scanty. Therefore, this qualitative case study used an in-depth focus-group interview with three in-service English language teachers in an early-adopting Hong Kong secondary school to explore their experiences of utilising GenAI tools in actual teaching practices and the underlying factors facilitating or hindering the application of GenAI in English language teaching. The findings showed that GenAI tools could be used to assist teachers in various tasks, including proofreading, generating teaching and assessment materials, offering feedback and suggestions, etc. The findings indicated that environmental factors, benefits to students’ language learning, and benefits to teachers’ professional work were the enablers for English teachers to integrate GenAI tools. Moreover, limitations of GenAI tools and teachers’ internal hindrance were identified as the barriers to incorporating GenAI in English language teaching. Practical implications and limitations are discussed.