Generative AI (GenAI) and pre-service teacher agency in ELT

Despite abundant research on the pedagogical benefits of generative AI (GenAI) in ELT, teachers’ agentive use of GenAI in an instructional context has not been fully explored. How pre-service teachers utilize GenAI in teacher-training courses also remains unclear. Thus, grounded in the framework of teacher agency and professional development, this study explored pre-service English teachers’ perceptions of engaging in a GenAI-enhanced lesson design project. Thematic analysis of interviews and reflection papers from eighteen pre-service English teachers who participated in lesson design with diverse GenAI tools revealed their agentive use of GenAI in two aspects: (1) agentive role in teacher–GenAI collaboration; (2) responsible GenAI use to address its constraints. The findings highlight the importance of pre-service teacher agency in leveraging GenAI for ELT. Pedagogical implications for training pre-service teachers in GenAI literacy are discussed.