From Automation to Reflection: Exploring Algerian EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of AI-Enhanced Creativity in Language Teaching

Abstract

This study examines Algerian university EFL teachers’ perceptions of artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on creativity in language teaching. Grounded in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework, and Self-Determination Theory (SDT), it explores how teachers conceptualize AI not merely as a tool but as a mediational partner in creative pedagogy. Using a qualitative phenomenological design, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 19 teachers from the English Department of Batna 2 University. Findings reveal that AI is perceived both as a catalyst for creativity and a threat to authenticity and learner autonomy. Three themes emerged: AI as a cognitive scaffold, ethical and motivational challenges, and teacher mediation as the core of AI-enhanced creativity. The study concludes that AI’s creative potential depends on teachers’ digital literacy, contextual adaptation, and reflective practice, contributing new insights into human–AI collaboration in under-researched EFL contexts such as Algeria.