Google is targeting the Duolingo language learning platform with a new search feature designed to help individuals practice and improve their English-speaking skills.
The company is preparing to roll out this innovative feature in the coming days on Android devices in Argentina, Colombia, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and Venezuela, this presents an excellent opportunity for learners to enhance their English language skills, future plans include expanding this service to more countries and supporting additional languages.
This new feature enables language learners to engage in interactive speaking practice while translating texts to and from the English language.
According to Christian Blagman, Google’s Research Director, and Katia Cox, the Product Manager, Google Search serves as a valuable tool for language learners.
Now, learners who translate to and from English using their Android devices will experience a new way to practice English speaking with personalized feedback.
During training sessions, users will be prompted to pronounce answers using the provided vocabulary.
Specialized feedback and subscription options will be offered to remind learners to continue training and progress to the next level of difficulty during each training session, which typically lasts between three to five minutes.
The experience will provide relevant feedback to ensure answers are contextually related and comprehensible to theoretical conversation partners.
Furthermore, it will recommend areas for improving grammar rules and provide a variety of example answers at different linguistic complexity levels.
Additionally, it will offer concrete suggestions for alternative response methods.
While participating in training sessions, learners can click on any unfamiliar word to see its translation within the context.
Google emphasizes that this feature adds value to other educational services such as personal lessons, mobile applications, and classroom sessions.
This technology relies heavily on artificial intelligence and machine learning. The advanced team at Google, known as “Deep Aligner,” developed a model to effectively connect different words and suggest translations.
Other research groups within the company improved text correction models and developed a model to determine text complexity levels.
Google employed linguists, teachers, and language experts with English as a second language to shape the teaching experience, resulting in a blend of human expertise and technology-assisted, internally-reviewed content.
