Volume 13, Issue 9 (September 2026), Pages: 81-89

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 Original Research Paper

Exploring faculty perceptions of AI in ELT at the University of Hail in the context of Saudi Vision 2030

 Author(s): 

Saleh Hammad A. Al Azmi ^{1, 2,} *, Naif Shalan S. Al Shammari ^{1, 2}, Mustafa A. Thabet ³

 Affiliation(s):

¹Department of English, College of Arts, University of Hail, Hail, Saudi Arabia
²Humanities Research Centre, University of Hail, Hail 55476, Saudi Arabia
³Faculty of Language Studies, Arab Open University, Saudi Arabia

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 * Corresponding Author. 

   Corresponding author's ORCID profile:  https://orcid.org/0009-0002-2573-9832

 Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

 
https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2026.09.008

 Abstract

This study explores faculty members’ awareness of, perceived benefits of, and challenges associated with the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in English language teaching (ELT) at the University of Hail, within the context of Saudi Vision 2030 and its goals for digital transformation and educational development. It examines whether perceptions differ by academic rank and investigates the relationships between EFL faculty members’ awareness of AI and their perceptions of its benefits and challenges in language teaching and learning, with the aim of informing the effective integration of AI into Saudi higher education. To achieve these objectives, questionnaire data were collected from 81 faculty members in the English Department. The results showed that faculty members had a high level of awareness of AI and positive perceptions of its importance in ELT, in line with the educational objectives of Vision 2030, with no statistically significant differences across academic ranks. However, academic rank was significantly correlated with awareness, suggesting that faculty members with higher academic ranks had greater awareness of AI. The findings also revealed a strong positive correlation between EFL faculty members’ awareness and their perceptions of AI’s role in enhancing ELT, as well as moderate positive correlations between awareness and perceived challenges and between perceived benefits and challenges. The thematic analysis of follow-up interviews identified four main challenges: the lack of clear institutional policies governing AI use, students’ over-reliance on AI at the expense of deeper learning, difficulties in distinguishing AI-generated content from student-authored work, and ethical concerns, including plagiarism and reduced student effort.

 © 2026 The Authors. Published by IASE.

 This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

 Keywords

Artificial intelligence, English language teaching, Faculty awareness, Academic rank, Saudi Vision 2030

 Article history

Received 8 May 2026, Received in revised form 21 August 2026, Accepted 15 September 2026

 Acknowledgment

This research has been funded by the Scientific Research Deanship at the University of Hail, Saudi Arabia, through project number (RCP-25064). 

 Compliance with ethical standards

 Ethical considerations

All participants provided informed consent prior to participation. Participation was voluntary, and respondents were informed of their right to withdraw at any stage without any consequences. Given the sensitive nature of the study, appropriate measures were taken to ensure participants’ safety, privacy, and emotional well-being. All data were anonymized and treated with strict confidentiality in accordance with ethical research standards and the Declaration of Helsinki. Ethical approval was obtained from the University of Hail Institutional Review Board (IRB Approval Number: H-2025-397, Date: October 27, 2025). 

 Citation:

Al Azmi SHA, Al Shammari NSS, and Thabet MA (2026). Exploring faculty perceptions of AI in ELT at the University of Hail in the context of Saudi Vision 2030. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 13(9): 81-89

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