With the development of science and technology, especially artificial intelligence (AI), educational and software developers have brought us more new experiences when using smartphones for work, life, and of course, we cannot fail to mention in today's topic: learning English in a modern way.
Typical apps such as Alexa developed by Amazon, Siri by Apple, Google Assitant by Google, Cortana by Microsoft, and Elsa by Ms. Vân Vũ and her colleagues are probably the most popular and "coolest" apps today.
Elsa is specifically designed for education, while the remaining apps are mostly used as voice search tools.
Have you ever applied them to learning a foreign language? In this sharing session, parents and students, let's explore the above apps from an English learning perspective with Fast Language.
Learning a foreign language through apps is one of the most economical ways to learn
Most apps are free. Elsa is a paid app, but in fact, the fee for purchasing a lifetime usage package is too cheap, ranging from zero (free) to about 2 million VND, and you can access this learning channel. This fee is only equivalent to one month of basic study at foreign language centers.
In simple mathematical terms, if you divide it by the lifetime learning time (infinite denominator), this fee is a great bargain.
Quality is continuously improved
Built on the foundation of artificial intelligence, but in fact, behind the apps is real human intelligence, the real work of a collective of educators, engineers, and business people; talented people probably not only at the level of one country but at the international level.
Technology is one of the fastest-moving and most creative industries; therefore, technological products, including educational technology, are constantly being improved.
You must have felt the innovations in the interface and curriculum on the apps through each version upgrade.
Scientific curriculum and can reach the level of personalization
The curricula are arranged in order from easy to difficult, and there are also entrance tests to identify the points you have done well and the points that are not so good.
Then the apps suggest a roadmap to focus more time on the points you need to improve. This is a deliberate practice method to achieve the best results; for example, by having you read a passage, pronunciation learning apps like Elsa can point out that you pronounce vowels and consonants well, but have errors in ending sounds (because Vietnamese often doesn't have ending sounds), unclear pronunciation of 's' and 'sh', etc.
In this respect, apps have developed to the point of personalization to each student, not just providing mass-produced curricula.
