Investigating the Feasibility of Teachers’ Use of ChatGPT in Teaching Students in North Khorasan Province and Proposing a Model

Abstract

The present study was conducted with the aim of examining the feasibility of teachers’ use of ChatGPT in teaching students in North Khorasan Province and proposing a corresponding model. In terms of purpose, this study was applied research, and in terms of method, it was a qualitative study based on the systematic grounded theory approach. The research population consisted of professors and experts in the fields of educational management and artificial intelligence, from whom 25 participants were selected through purposive sampling until theoretical saturation was reached. Data were collected through unstructured in-depth interviews and analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding. To ensure the trustworthiness of the findings, Guba and Lincoln’s criteria, including credibility, dependability, transferability, and confirmability, were employed. The results indicated that teachers’ use of ChatGPT in teaching is influenced by a set of multilayered factors and conditions. In the category of causal conditions, 6 core components were identified: motivational teaching, efficient teaching, multidimensional teaching, sustainable teaching, aligned teaching, and technology-based teaching. In the category of strategies, 5 core components were extracted, namely widespread internet access, teaching capacity building, teacher training, teacher preparation, and continuous monitoring of ChatGPT productivity. In addition, the contextual conditions included educational support, managerial support, follow-up of teachers’ problems, programmatic support, and infrastructural and informatics support. In contrast, the intervening conditions were characterized by three main barriers: the superficiality of teaching, teachers’ lack of technological proficiency, and teaching inefficiency due to insufficient internet access. Finally, the consequences of using ChatGPT included facilitating students’ learning, increasing teachers’ instructional efficiency, providing learning opportunities, and enhancing flexibility in learning management. The findings suggest that the effective use of ChatGPT requires the integration of teachers’ professional empowerment, managerial support, the development of technological infrastructure, and continuous educational supervision.