Exploring academics' perspectives on the future implementation of ChatGPT for advancing AI-based precision education: a preliminary study in a developing country

The rapid advancement of generative AI holds promises for revolutionizing educational practices. The conversational capabilities of OpenAI's ChatGPT set it apart from the other tools and sparked interest in its potential applications in AI-based precision education. However, not much is known about how academics at universities, particularly in developing countries, perceive ChatGPT's potential inclusion into higher education in the future. This study investigates the perspectives of academics about the possible advantages, difficulties, and factors to be taken into account while implementing ChatGPT in university-level precision education. A survey was conducted with 57 academic staff members from eight Egyptian universities, selected through purposive sampling. The study sought to answer three key research questions: (1) What are the academics’ perspectives regarding possible advantages of the future implementation of ChatGPT to advance AI-based precision education? (2) What are the academics’ perspectives regarding possible challenges of the future implementation of ChatGPT to advance AI-based precision education? (3) What are the academics’ perspectives regarding what should be considered when using ChatGPT to advance AI-based precision education? The findings showed that although academics believe ChatGPT has great potential to improve personalized learning and help students outside of the classroom, they also voice worries about ethical issues such as privacy threats, biases in AI, and a lack of emotional intelligence. These findings suggest that while ChatGPT could be a valuable tool in precision education, its implementation must be carefully managed to address technical and ethical challenges. The study provides recommendations for future research and policy development in AI-driven education in developing countries.