Challenges of Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) Paraphrasing Tools at University Level: A Survey Research

Abstract

The growing use of articfical intelligence (AI) paraphrasing tools among university students creates both potential and serious obstacles in academic writing. While these technologies are convenient and efficient, they raise questions about academic integrity, output quality, and the development of critical thinking abilities. This study utilizes a quantitative research design and participants were chosen by using convenient sampling technique. Survey questionnaire was developed for gathering responses from participants. Students faced different challenges by paraphrasing texts and results revealed six themes Perception and preference, effectiveness and ease of use, dependence and over reliance, academic integrity, accuracy and reliability and lastly challenges of using paraphrasing tool. These are some major challenges which were faced by students are risk of plagiarism, In accurate or poor quality rewriting, loss of original meaning  , Over reliance on technology, lack of vocabulary skill, in accuracy of paraphrasing tools. The research recommends incorporating AI literacy into university courses, encouraging ethical use, and developing more effective detection techniques to maintain academic standards. Addressing these difficulties would enable educators and institutions to better lead students in using AI tools ethically and successfully.