Samuel Wilson 
Google Introduces New Feature for English Speaking Practice via Search
Google is taking aim at language learning apps like Duolingo with a new feature designed to help users practice and enhance their English speaking skills. This feature will be available on Android devices for users in Argentina, Colombia, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and Venezuela initially, with plans for expansion to more countries and languages in the future.
Google’s new feature offers an interactive speaking practice experience, presenting users with prompts and asking them to respond using provided vocabulary words. Each practice session lasts 3 to 5 minutes and provides personalized feedback. Users can also opt to receive daily reminders to maintain their practice and progress to more advanced levels.
The personalized feedback includes semantic feedback, assessing the relevance and comprehensibility of responses, as well as suggestions for grammar improvement and alternative response examples at varying language complexity levels. Users can tap on unfamiliar words to view translations in context.
This feature is designed to complement other language learning resources like tutoring, mobile apps, and classes. It required substantial AI and machine learning engineering to develop models for translation suggestions, grammar correction, and semantic feedback.
Google collaborated with linguists, teachers, and language learning experts to create a blend of human-expert and AI-generated content. In the future, Google plans to expand the program to include additional language learning partners.
While Google’s motivation for this feature remains open to speculation, it appears to be a move to enhance user engagement. However, whether it will evolve into a direct challenger to established language learning apps remains uncertain. Google has previously ventured into language learning tools, and its future plans will likely depend on the feature’s popularity.
In the world of language education, which is a lucrative field, Google’s expansion into this space is intriguing. Whether it’s merely a user engagement strategy or a more ambitious endeavor, time will tell.
Disclaimer: The views, suggestions, and opinions expressed here are the sole responsibility of the experts. No Dive Digest journalist was involved in the writing and production of this article.