What Have People Discussed about ChatGPT in Malaysian Education? A Qualitative Content Analysis of News Articles

Abstract

ChatGPT became a top trending news topic in late 2022. People were astounded by the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot’s ability to write emails, essays and computer codes; edit and correct grammar; provide suggestions; and so on in a human-like conversational manner. Many months after its official launch, people are still debating whether and how the chatbot might transform the way people do things in various sectors. One such sector is education. Academics and educational institutions have been seeking to figure out how to effectively adapt teaching and learning in response to ChatGPT. This study examined what has been discussed in the news about ChatGPT in Malaysian education during the first few months following its launch. This study first searched for articles in three major Malaysian English newspapers using the search terms "ChatGPT" and "education". Then, qualitative content analysis was employed to classify discussions about ChatGPT in Malaysian education published in 16 articles into categories and subcategories. The findings show that the discussions in the news could be coded into five level-one categories and 14 level-two subcategories. The findings of this study could help academics and educational institutions gain a better understanding of people's attitudes, concerns, and sentiments towards ChatGPT in Malaysian education to adapt learning design and delivery as well as point to future research directions.