This presentation examines the integration of ChatGPT into an academic writing curriculum within a year-long honors program at a university in Japan’s Kanto region. The program selects students based on their potential contributions to global society rather than English proficiency, resulting in diverse language abilities. The curriculum fosters critical thinking and confidence in English expression through a fluency-first approach, followed by accuracy-focused refinement.

Students engage in structured writing activities centered on three self-selected Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), producing three distinct academic essays per semester. Each class begins with an SDG-related news article, prompting structured discussion and freewriting. Technology plays a key role in refining student output, with initial language adjustments made using DeepL and later ChatGPT. In formal essay development, students use ChatGPT to generate C1- and C2-level rewrites, accompanied by AI-generated explanations of linguistic modifications. By comparing outputs, students refine their understanding of tone, accuracy, and nuance. This AI-enhanced process encourages self-editing, peer review, and collaborative learning, allowing instructors to adopt a facilitative rather than directive role. The integration of ChatGPT not only strengthens students’ writing and editing skills but also deepens their critical engagement with language and content.