Reviewing the Usage of ChatGPT on L2 students' English Academic Writing Learning

Abstract

This paper reviews previous literature to explore the usage of ChatGPT in helping L2 students with English academic writing. There are several types of views on the usage of ChatGPT in assisting writing. Generally, researchers regard ChatGPT as beneficial for it can maximize the efficiency and accuracy of writing, which can facilitate students’ learning. There are also previous empirical studies showing that ChatGPT is a useful tool in English academic learning, especially in the writing area. This paper concludes that 1) Proofreading is one of the most crucial functions to support English writing. It can help with spelling, grammar, word precision, and sentence cohesion. 2) Brainstorming is another application of ChatGPT which is useful for coming up with ideas for writing topics, suggesting an outline, and searching appropriate literature evidence. 3) Translating is one of the most widely used functions of ChatGPT, because it can automatically translate and paraphrase with a high standard of accuracy. The significance of this paper is that it can be adopted in the students' independent writing process, and in the classroom to help students better complete the writing task under teachers’ guidance.