AI-ASSISTED DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION IN LEGAL ENGLISH: THE AILED MODEL

Abstract

This article addresses one of the most important problems in the field of Legal English instruction: using artificial intelligence (AI) to organise effective, differentiated instruction for learners with diverse language skills. Legal English is a branch of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) that requires proficiency in legal terminology, legal genres, and legal discourse, as well as general language proficiency. Uniform instructional materials may be too challenging for some students and not challenging enough for others.

The article proposes the AILED (AI-Assisted Legal English Differentiation) Model, which integrates AI-assisted differentiation of legal terminology, adaptation of instructional texts, and principles of differentiated instruction. The model has been developed after an in-depth review of literature on Legal English pedagogy, AI-assisted language learning, and differentiated instruction, as well as an analysis of placement-test data from 103 Master's students enrolled in law and jurisprudence programmes at the International Scientific-Educational Center of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia. The placement data provide evidence of heterogeneous proficiency among law and jurisprudence students, supporting the need for differentiated Legal English instruction.

The proposed model consists of five interconnected stages. First, it evaluates students' language proficiency, prepares differentiated language-support materials, and confirms their professional and pedagogical suitability through a range of learning activities and feedback on learning outcomes. The model should operate as a cyclical process, with learning outcomes leading to choices of further materials and differentiation. It illustrates its use with a practical example, using legal language and texts that are differentiated but have similar cognitive demands at each proficiency level.

The article concludes that the AILED Model offers a practical pedagogical approach to addressing proficiency differences in Legal English instruction, facilitating the acquisition of specialised legal terminology, and enabling the purposeful and supervised integration of AI into the teaching and learning process.