LLM-as-a-tutor in EFL Writing Education: Focusing on Evaluation of Student-LLM Interaction

Jieun Han, Haneul Yoo, Junho Myung, Minsun Kim, Hyunseung Lim, Yoonsu Kim, Tak Yeon Lee, Hwajung Hong, Juho Kim, So-Yeon Ahn, Alice Oh

Proceedings of the 1st Workshop on Customizable NLP: Progress and Challenges in Customizing NLP for a Domain, Application, Group, or Individual (CustomNLP4U), 2024 (CustomNLP4U@EMNLP2024)

Abstract

In the context of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) writing education, LLM-as-a-tutor can assist students by providing real-time feedback on their essays. However, challenges arise in assessing LLM-as-a-tutor due to differing standards between educational and general use cases. To bridge this gap, we integrate pedagogical principles to assess student-LLM interaction. First, we explore how LLMs can function as English tutors, providing effective essay feedback tailored to students. Second, we propose three criteria to evaluate LLM-as-a-tutor specifically designed for EFL writing education, emphasizing pedagogical aspects. In this process, EFL experts evaluate the feedback from LLM-as-a-tutor regarding (1) quality and (2) characteristics. On the other hand, EFL learners assess their (3) learning outcomes from interaction with LLM-as-a-tutor. This approach lays the groundwork for developing LLMs-as-a-tutor tailored to the needs of EFL learners, advancing the effectiveness of writing education in this context.

BibTeX

@inproceedings{han-etal-2024-llm,
    title = "{LLM}-as-a-tutor in {EFL} Writing Education: Focusing on Evaluation of Student-{LLM} Interaction",
    author = "Han, Jieun  and
      Yoo, Haneul  and
      Myung, Junho  and
      Kim, Minsun  and
      Lim, Hyunseung  and
      Kim, Yoonsu  and
      Lee, Tak Yeon  and
      Hong, Hwajung  and
      Kim, Juho  and
      Ahn, So-Yeon  and
      Oh, Alice",
    editor = "Kumar, Sachin  and
      Balachandran, Vidhisha  and
      Park, Chan Young  and
      Shi, Weijia  and
      Hayati, Shirley Anugrah  and
      Tsvetkov, Yulia  and
      Smith, Noah  and
      Hajishirzi, Hannaneh  and
      Kang, Dongyeop  and
      Jurgens, David",
    booktitle = "Proceedings of the 1st Workshop on Customizable NLP: Progress and Challenges in Customizing NLP for a Domain, Application, Group, or Individual (CustomNLP4U)",
    month = nov,
    year = "2024",
    address = "Miami, Florida, USA",
    publisher = "Association for Computational Linguistics",
    url = "https://aclanthology.org/2024.customnlp4u-1.21/",
    doi = "10.18653/v1/2024.customnlp4u-1.21",
    pages = "284--293",
    abstract = "In the context of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) writing education, LLM-as-a-tutor can assist students by providing real-time feedback on their essays. However, challenges arise in assessing LLM-as-a-tutor due to differing standards between educational and general use cases. To bridge this gap, we integrate pedagogical principles to assess student-LLM interaction. First, we explore how LLMs can function as English tutors, providing effective essay feedback tailored to students. Second, we propose three criteria to evaluate LLM-as-a-tutor specifically designed for EFL writing education, emphasizing pedagogical aspects. In this process, EFL experts evaluate the feedback from LLM-as-a-tutor regarding (1) quality and (2) characteristics. On the other hand, EFL learners assess their (3) learning outcomes from interaction with LLM-as-a-tutor. This approach lays the groundwork for developing LLMs-as-a-tutor tailored to the needs of EFL learners, advancing the effectiveness of writing education in this context."
}