Types and Characteristics of Students’ Imagined Identities in AI-assisted English learning

© 2025 by the Author. Licensee Whioce Publishing, Singapore. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )

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Abstract

With the rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into primary education, AI tools are currently transitioning from serving as “auxiliary devices” to becoming “interactive partners” in students’ English language learning. Based on Norton’s identity theory, this study explored three main types of imagined identities: the Co-learner, the Playmate, and the Tutee. These identities were characterized by three core attributes: situational dependency, a positive emotional orientation, and dynamic constructiveness. The research has contributed to the theoretical discourse on student identity in AI-assisted language learning and provides practical implications for designing AI-supported English learning environments that foster adaptive and positive imagined identities among elementary school students.

Keywords

AI-assisted English learning

Elementary education

Imagined identity

Funding

14th Five-Year Plan Project of Gansu Provincial Educational Science: AI Empowering English Learning in Primary and Secondary Schools: Interactive Research on Virtual Identity Construction and Learning Agency (Project No.: GS[2025]GHB1505); University Teachers’ Innovation Fund Project of Gansu Provincial Department of Education: English Learning at the Basic Stage under Human-Machine Collaboration: Mechanism Exploration of Students’ Imagined Identity and Learning Investment; Doctoral Fund Project of Longdong University, Gansu Province: Ideology and Identity Construction of English Undergraduates in Micro-Classroom Scenarios from the Perspective of Language Socialization (Project No.: XYBYSK2210)

References

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