EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of AI-Mediated Foreign Language Education and Economic Advancement in Saudi Arabia: A Human Capital Perspective

Abstract
Drawing on human capital theory, this qualitative study explored Saudi English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers’ perspectives on the potential role of artificial intelligence (AI)-mediated foreign language education in supporting economic advancement. Data were collected from 14 Saudi EFL teachers through semi-structured interviews and narrative frames and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings yielded four higher-order themes: language and communication development, workforce readiness and global participation, AI-supported teaching and learning capacity, and equitable access and system-level support. The first theme comprised general and professional language proficiency, technical and professional vocabulary, and intercultural communication. The second theme included employability and global-market access and a competitive and innovative workforce. The third theme encompassed teaching quality and evolving teacher roles, learner engagement, and AI literacy and critical/ethical use, while the fourth theme focused on equitable access, infrastructure, policy, and investment. Taken together, the findings indicate that teachers perceived AI-mediated foreign language education as having the potential to support economic advancement through the development of linguistically skilled, digitally literate, and professionally adaptable human capital. The findings offer implications for EFL practices while also highlighting broader institutional and policy issues that warrant further empirical investigation.