Reimagining Teacher Professional Development in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

The increasing presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in language education has raised important questions about how teachers are professionally prepared to integrate these technologies into pedagogy. This mixed-methods study investigates Iranian EFL teachers' engagement with AI-focused teacher professional development (TPD), with particular attention to AI literacy, pedagogical integration, ethical preparedness, and contextual constraints. Survey data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation, and regression analyses, complemented by semi-structured interviews analyzed thematically. The findings indicate that existing TPD initiatives primarily emphasize technical training, offering limited support for pedagogical decision-making and ethical considerations such as data privacy, algorithmic bias, and student agency. AI literacy emerged as a significant predictor of meaningful pedagogical integration of AI and perceived teacher autonomy, while teaching experience showed no significant effect. Qualitative findings further reveal institutional limitations, infrastructural disparities, and professional identity concerns as key challenges, alongside the perceived value of collaborative professional learning. The study underscores the need for sustained, context-sensitive, and ethically informed professional development models to support responsible AI integration in EFL teaching.

کلیدواژه ها:

AI literacy ، Artificial intelligence ، EFL teachers ، Iranian context ، teacher professional development ، teacher autonomy