The impact of AI on language learning

Charlotte Guest
People sat in a office, one with a VR headset on smiling and gesturing with the other two watching

Recently, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has shown itself to be a useful and breakthrough tool for many things, including language learning. Educators, learners and businesses are constantly seeking effective methods to impart language skills and AI-powered solutions have proved to be invaluable assets in this regard.

The impact of AI on language learning is multifaceted, presenting opportunities as well as challenges for educators, learners and corporate entities. According to a , many institutions say that AI will be instrumental to improving their competitiveness, funding, and innovation.

It is a widely discussed topic nowadays. While it has its advantages, there are also some drawbacks to consider.

The impact of AI on language learning
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Pros

Personalized learning

AI-powered language learning platforms analyze user's strengths, weaknesses, learning pace, and preferences to offer a personalized learning path. This approach enhances engagement and optimizes learning outcomes and goals.

Accessible

These types of applications and programs enable language learners to access lessons, exercises, and tutoring from anywhere, at any time, breaking down barriers and offering flexibility to learners worldwide. It can aid and support students with additional needs, making learning a lot less of an obstacle. For example, condensing/summarising content or tasks in an understandable way or suggesting word alternatives, just to name a few.

Enhanced and immediate feedback

It can provide learners with instantaneous feedback on their pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary usage. This feedback allows learners to identify their mistakes and rectify them promptly, accelerating the learning process. AI can use advanced voice recognition technology to detect the learner's pronunciation and accent to provide accurate feedback.

With real-time analysis, algorithms can identify errors and suggest corrections right away and feedback is personalized.Ìý Based on the level of proficiency, algorithms can provide suggestions that are easy to understand and implement. This means more time to do other things, without worrying about providing or waiting for feedback.

Augmented teaching

AI tools are used to supplement traditional teaching methods. They help teachers create dynamic lesson plans, track student progress and identify areas that require additional attention, enhancing overall teaching effectiveness. This makes teaching more effective and enjoyable for both teachers and students. Plus, it takes some of the pressure off teachers by lightening their workload.

Cons

Lack of human interaction

AI has a significant limitation in language learning as it lacks the ability to provide authentic human interaction. Language acquisition is a complex process that involves cultural nuances and subtle communication cues that AI may not be able to fully comprehend. As a result, the immersive experience may be limited.

We have not yet reached a level where AI is proficient in natural spoken conversation, so its ability to assist in certain language contexts is currently limited. It will no doubt develop over time, but currently, it's not at a developed enough level. There are upcoming experimental conversational tools like , developed by Google, which are great examples of AI-powered conversation simulators.Ìý Ìý

Plagiarism and overreliance

Excessive reliance on AI-based tools might hinder the development of self-reliance and critical thinking skills in learners. Relying solely on technology and the ability to adapt to diverse real-world linguistic scenarios.ÌýTeachers are also more likely to face the challenge of students submitting AI-generated assignments.

So tools and systems will have to be implemented to check and identify any unoriginal AI-generated content. But this will be a constant process; as AI evolves and improves, so will plagiarism systems; it will likely be a constant race to keep up.ÌýCommonly used like are now incorporating checks for AI-generated content; the company reported that reviewed had been flagged as having its majority content AI-generated.Ìý

Unequal access/resources

There is a concern that not all learners may have equal access to these tools due to technological disparities, which could create a learning divide. While some schools and institutions may have the resources to invest in advanced AI systems and software, others may lack the necessary infrastructure or funding to provide their students with the same level of access.

This could mean that students in less privileged communities or schools may be at a disadvantage, missing out on the benefits of AI-powered learning tools and falling behind their peers who have access to them. Technology typically becomes cheaper over time, due to things like improved manufacturing processes, wider circulation and broader competition but this still may mean less privileged institutions could be left behind, using older or previous-generation tech which may not be as easy to use and learn from.

Privacy and ethics

AI-powered language learning platforms collect a large amount of user data. However, many users are concerned about data privacy, security breaches, and of their personal information. As AI is implemented more heavily into platforms, it will require more data to function effectively. Therefore, advanced security systems must be implemented and kept up to date to ensure that user data is securely protected from potential data breaches.Ìý

As it's integrated more into people's lives and work, countries have begun Implementing AI-related laws to ensure the safe and ethical use of AI in daily life. Similarly, as AI develops, laws will need to constantly develop to keep up to date with technological advancements.Ìý

What about the future?

The field of language learning has a promising future with the advancement of AI. Below are some potential predictions for the not-so-far-away future:

Advancements in natural language processing (NLP)

Ìýwill likely continue to advance, allowing AI systems to better understand, interpret, and generate human language. Helping it to understand the subtleties of human emotion. This will result in more advanced language learning applications with contextual understanding and nuanced feedback.

Enhanced multilingual capabilities

As technology advances, AI-driven language learning platforms are becoming increasingly popular. These platforms are now being designed to offer greater support for a wide range of languages, catering to the diverse linguistic needs of individuals worldwide. This will enable more people to access quality language education, regardless of their location or background.

With the help of these platforms, language learners could benefit from personalized and immersive learning experiences that are tailored to their unique needs and preferences.

Greater integration of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR)

VR and AR with AI will revolutionize the way we learn languages. This cutting-edge technology will create highly immersive environments that simulate real-life scenarios, allowing learners to practice their language skills in a safe and controlled environment. Mondly by ɫèAV is a great example of using this kind of technology in language learning with their and apps.Ìý

One example is that students could use virtual reality to travel to a foreign country and communicate with native speakers in real time. Easily ordering food from local restaurants or navigating through the city, all within the virtual reality platform. This type of experiential learning could significantly enhance cultural understanding, improve communication skills, and boost language proficiency, all in the comfort of home, school, or even the workplace.

With the increasing affordability and accessibility of such technologies, it is expected that such learning experiences will become more common. There are already VR with AI-controlled characters to produce more realistic and expanded responses to conversations, rather than responses being limited by a select few pre-programmed choices and getting the same few responses. This could also expand to language learning games/simulations.Ìý

Ìý

The impact of AI on language learning is unquestionably transformative. It offers personalized, accessible, and efficient learning experiences. However, there are challenges such as the lack of human interaction and data privacy concerns. Therefore, we need to maintain a balanced approach while leveraging AI for language education.

As technology evolves, it's crucial to harness its potential while preserving the essence of authentic language acquisition and cultural understanding. The future promises exciting advancements that will further revolutionize language learning through AI integration.Ìý

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    AI can be highly beneficial to language education by enhancing our students’ process of learning, rather than simply being used by students to ‘demonstrate’ a product of learning. However, this is easier said than done, and given that AI is an innovative tool in the classroom, it is crucial that educators help students to maintain authenticity in their work and prevent AI-assisted ‘cheating’. With this in mind, striking a balance between AI integration and academic integrity is critical.

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    Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and Gemini have made it easier than ever for students to refine and develop their writing. However, these tools also raise concerns about whether submitted texts are student-produced, and if so, to what extent. If students rely on text generation tools instead of their own skills, our understanding of our students’ abilities may not reflect their true proficiency.

    Another issue is that if students continue to use AI for a skill they are capable of doing on their own, they’re likely to eventually lose that skill or become significantly worse at it.

    These points create a significant ethical dilemma:

    • How does AI support learning, or does it (have the potential to) replace the learning process?
    • How can educators differentiate between genuine student ability and AI-assisted responses?

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    There are many ways in which educators can integrate AI responsibly, while encouraging our learners to do so too.

    1.ÌýRedesign tasks to make them more ‘AI-resistant’

    No task can be completely ‘AI-resistant’, but there are ways in which teachers can adapt coursebook tasks or take inspiration from activities in order to make them less susceptible to being completed using AI.

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    • Adapt writing tasks to be hyperlocal or context-specific. Generative AI is less likely to be able to generate texts that are context-bound. Focus on local issues and developments, as well as school or classroom-related topics. A great example is having students write a report on current facilities in their classroom and suggestions for improving the learning environment.
    • Focus on the process of writing rather than the final product. Have students use mind maps to make plans for their writing, have them highlight notes from this that they use in their text and then reflect on the steps they took once they’ve written their piece.
    • Use multimodal learning. Begin a writing task with a class survey, debate or discussion, then have students write up their findings into a report, essay, article or other task type.
    • Design tasks with skill-building at the core. Have students use their critical thinking skills to analyse what AI produces, creatively adapt its output and problem solve by fact-checking AI-generated text.

    2.ÌýUse AI so that students understand you know how to use it

    Depending on the policies in your institution, if you can use AI in the classroom with your students, they will see that you know about different AI tools and their output. A useful idea is to generate a text as a class, and have students critically analyse the AI-generated text. What do they think was done well? What could be improved? What would they have done differently?

    You can also discuss the ethical implications of AI in education (and other industries) with your students, to understand their view on it and better see in what situations they might see AI as a help or a hindrance.

    3.ÌýUse the GSE Learning Objectives to build confidence in language abilities

    Sometimes, students might turn to AI if they don’t know where to start with a task or lack confidence in their language abilities. With this in mind, it’s important to help your students understand where their language abilities are and what they’re working towards, with tangible evidence of learning. This is where the GSE Learning Objectives can help.

    The Global Scale of English (GSE) provides detailed, skill-specific objectives at every proficiency level, from 10 to 90. These can be used to break down complex skills into achievable steps, allowing students to see exactly what they need to do to improve their language abilities at a granular level.

    • Start by sharing the GSE Learning Objectives with students at the start of class to ensure they know what the expectations and language goals are for the lesson. At the end of the lesson, you can then have students reflect on their learning and find evidence of their achievement through their in-class work and what they’ve produced or demonstrated.
    • Set short-term GSE Learning Objectives for the four key skills – speaking, listening, reading and writing. That way, students will know what they’re working towards and have a clear idea of their language progression.
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