The impact of EFL instructors’ AI competence on developing the quality of English education in Ha’il: Teachers’ perspective

Artificial intelligence (AI) has permeated our daily lives. This has led many educational institutions and organizations to sponsor research exploring the applications of AI in teaching/learning processes. This study explores the impact of EFL instructors’ competence in using AI technologies to develop the quality of English education (QEE) at the University of Ha’il. This research also probes the factors that hinder the achievement of QEE. The study designed a questionnaire based on UNESCO’s (2023) framework for measuring teachers’ competence in AI technology, and OECD’s (2025) frameworks for assessing the quality of English among seventy-one EFL instructors at the University of Ha’il. Thirty EFL instructors also responded to an open-ended question attached to a questionnaire concerning factors that hinder the quality of English education in an AI-based environment. The results indicated that EFL instructors at the University of Ha’il had high competency levels in AI technology (M = 3.90, SD =.839). The study found that EFL instructors’ AI competence had a moderate positive relationship with QEE (t = 3.539, p < 0.001). The study’s findings identified five factors that hindered the development of QEE at the University of Ha’il. These include instructors, motivation, students, institutional factors, and language-related factors. The results of the study suggest opportunities for reshaping QEE in Ha’il region. The findings reported some hindrances that need to be tackled to enhance EFL instructors’ competence in using AI technology and its impact on delivering their lectures to their students.