THE ROLE OF CRITICAL THINKING IN THESIS WRITING SUPPORTED BY AI TOOLS

Authors

  • Neneng Sunengsih Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.
  • Maya Defianty Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.
  • Siti Zulfa Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.
  • Yatni Fatwa Mulyati Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.
  • Waliyadin Waliyadin University of Canberra, Canberra, Australia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15408/ijee.v13i1.49970

Keywords:

Academic writing, Artificial Intelligence, Critical thinking, Higher education, Thesis writing

Abstract

The growing use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the academic writing process highlights the importance of Critical Thinking (CT). The research explores how students' levels of CT influence their use of AI tools in academic writing, focusing on 16 students in the English education master's program who have joined a writing community. Using a qualitative method, the research employed a CT test and structured interviews as instruments. Two students achieved the highest score (85), while one student obtained the lowest score (28). The results showed a two-sided attitude towards AI usage. On the positive side, students acknowledge that AI improved their grammar, vocabulary, and idea formation. On the negative side, there were generic responses, a lack of originality, and overdependence on AI tools. Notably, students with higher CT skills tended to use AI more strategically for brainstorming, outlining, and refining content. In contrast, students with lower CT skills relied on AI to generate content holistically and make final-stage revisions. The findings showed that critical thinking plays a mediating role in ensuring the effective use of AI tools in academic writing. The study highlights the integration of CT and AI tools to promote better academic writing products and cognitive engagement.

Author Biographies

  • Neneng Sunengsih, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.

    Neneng Sunengsih is an English Lecturer in English Education, Department of English Education, Faculty of Educational Sciences, UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia. Her research interests include English Language Teaching (ELT), language assessment, English morphology, TOEFL preparation, English for Academic Purposes (EAP), and language teaching methodology. She has published in Scopus-indexed journals and actively presents her research at international conferences, including TEFLIN, ASIA TEFL, and ICEMS. In this study, she conceptualized the research framework, served as the principal investigator, and led and coordinated all stages of the research project.

  • Maya Defianty, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.

    Maya Defianty is an Associate Professor in English Education, Department of English Education, Faculty of Educational Sciences, UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia. Her research interests include formative assessment, critical thinking in English language teaching, curriculum development, language testing and assessment, teacher professional development, emergency remote teaching, English for Specific Purposes (ESP), and educational technology. She has published extensively in international journals and books and regularly presents at international academic conferences. In this study, she developed the research instruments, conducted the data analysis, and contributed to writing the introduction and discussion sections of the manuscript.

  • Siti Zulfa, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.

    Siti Zulfa is an English Lecturer in the Department of English Education, Faculty of Educational Sciences, UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia. Her research interests include English language teaching, academic writing, educational technology, artificial intelligence in language learning, technology-assisted language learning, language assessment, instructional communication, second language acquisition, and digital pedagogy. She has published in reputable national journals and conference proceedings. In this study, she conducted the literature review, synthesized the theoretical framework, prepared the presentation of the findings, and contributed to writing the discussion section of the manuscript.

  • Yatni Fatwa Mulyati, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.

    Yatni Fatwa Mulyati is an English Lecturer in the Department of English Education, Faculty of Educational Sciences, UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia. Her research interests include English Language Teaching, educational technology, EFL textbook analysis, reading assessment, classroom discourse, politeness strategies, cultural representation in ELT materials, and language education. She has published in reputable national journals and conference proceedings. In this study, she collected the research data, assisted in the data analysis, and prepared the presentation of the research findings.

  • Waliyadin Waliyadin, University of Canberra, Canberra, Australia

    Waliyadin is a doctoral candidate at the University of Canberra, Australia, and an English Lecturer. His research interests include pragmatics, English language teaching, critical pedagogy, and teacher education. His recent work examines the development of Indonesian EFL learners' pragmatic competence through speech-act instruction and teacher educators' understanding and implementation of critical pedagogy in English reading classrooms. He is also an active contributor of educational opinion articles in national newspapers. In this study, he contributed to writing the discussion and conclusion sections, conducted meticulous proofreading, and performed the final review of the manuscript before publication.

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Published

2026-06-26

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 1 (2026): IJEE (INDONESIAN JOURNAL OF ENGLISH EDUCATION)| VOL. 13 | NO. 1 | 2026

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Neneng Sunengsih, Maya Defianty, Siti Zulfa, Yatni Fatwa Mulyati, Waliyadin Waliyadin

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

THE ROLE OF CRITICAL THINKING IN THESIS WRITING SUPPORTED BY AI TOOLS. (2026). IJEE (Indonesian Journal of English Education), 13(1). https://doi.org/10.15408/ijee.v13i1.49970