GenAI and BDDL Tools for Academic L2 English Postgraduate Writing in Tourism: A Local Case Study

Abstract

GenAI (Generative Artificial Intelligence) is being extensively explored for academic L2 (second language) English writing skills in higher education, but its impact on research writing at postgraduate levels remains underexplored. This study presents an examination of this context within the tourism degree at University of Extremadura. Four participants engaged in a 10-hour hybrid course about GenAI for academic writing in October 2024. The course also integrated Broad Data-Driven Learning (BDDL) tools as online corpus interfaces designed to assist with linguistic comparison and writing development. Participants’ feedback was collected and analyzed by qualitative means (inclass discussions, task writing annotation, and final survey). Overall findings indicate notably positive responses and usage of these tools for both content and linguistic improvement in the texts. Despite the study’s small sample size, these preliminary findings suggest that postgraduate researchers in tourism can adequately combine expert and linguistic knowledge in their leverage of GenAI and BDDL.