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Critical AI Literacy in Foreign Language Writing Instruction in the Age of Generative AI: Theoretical Framework and Pedagogical Pathways

Author(s)

Mu He*

Affiliation(s)

School of Foreign Languages and Literatures, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China *Corresponding Author

Abstract

This study conceptualizes critical AI literacy to address the subjective risk of the erosion of authorial voice, cultural stance and judgmental accountability in AI-assisted writing instruction. Drawing on critical language awareness and critical information literacy, a theoretical framework grounded in the Awareness-Positionality-Strategies-Evaluation (APSE) model is established. Unlike general or generative AI literacy, critical AI literacy shifts the focus from effective tool use to the maintenance of authorial judgment in human-AI collaboration. The framework analyzes the subjective risk, embeds critical literacy into the three-stage instructional design, and establishes a three-tiered evaluation structure. It repositions APSE as a pedagogical instrument and enables the paradigm shift from technological competence to authorial agency. This study provides both theoretical basis and practical pathways for AI-mediated writing instruction.

Keywords

Critical AI Literacy; Foreign Language Writing Instruction; APSE Framework; Subjectivity; Human-AI Collaboration; Generative AI

References

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