ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Educ.
Sec. Higher Education
Generative AI Use and Self-learning in Higher Education: The Role of Learning Difficulties
Provisionally accepted
- Zayed University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
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The rapid development of GenAI tools and their adoption in education have shown promising potential to personalize learning experiences. However, their effectiveness is influenced by factors such as familiarity, frequency of use, and the impact on self-learning. This study investigates the undergraduate students' familiarity with Generative AI (GenAI) tools, their frequency of use, and the perceived impact of GenAI on self-learning, with particular consideration of differences between students with and without learning difficulties. Prompt engineering is also included as a secondary aspect of students' GenAI experience. The research used a cross-sectional study with 78 undergraduate students enrolled in GenEd courses and aged 17-21 (M=18.5, SD=0.86). The results of the study found that frequent use of GenAI tools was positively correlated with improvements in communication skills, time efficiency, and academic performance. However, students with learning difficulties exhibited a lower frequency of use, highlighting the need for targeted interventions to increase accessibility and engagement. Additionally, the study revealed low familiarity with GenAI and prompt engineering, highlighting the importance of structured training for students and faculty. The findings suggest that educational institutions should invest in comprehensive training programs to maximize the potential of GenAI tools and promote inclusive learning experiences, particularly for students facing academic challenges.
Keywords: generative AI (GenAI), higher education, learning difficulties, Prompt Engineering, Self-learning
Received: 02 Nov 2025; Accepted: 15 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Saleh and ElSayary. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Areej ElSayary
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