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Evaluating a Conversational Agent for Second Language Learning Aligned with the School Curriculum

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Artificial Intelligence in Education. Posters and Late Breaking Results, Workshops and Tutorials, Industry and Innovation Tracks, Practitioners, Doctoral Consortium and Blue Sky (AIED 2023)

Part of the book series: Communications in Computer and Information Science ((CCIS,volume 1831))

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Abstract

Interaction and its underlying processes have long been considered foundational to second language learning. Language learners, however, are often presented with few opportunities for meaningful, interactive practice. The rapid advancements in speech and language technologies in recent years have given rise to a number of conversational agents seeking to address this need within the interdisciplinary research area of dialogue-based computer-assisted language learning (CALL). While dialogue-based CALL has been shown to foster language proficiency development, it is crucial that a system is evaluated from multiple dimensions, from the technological sufficiency of the underlying components to learning and intercultural outcomes. In this paper, we present the plans and status of three studies targeting different aspects of a conversational agent, Aisla, developed for use in German secondary schools and aligned with the linguistic and intercultural goals of the English as a foreign language curriculum.

Supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the LEAD Graduate School & Research Network, which is funded by the Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts of the state of Baden-Württemberg within the framework of the sustainability funding for the projects of the Excellence Initiative II.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Tübingen, Walter-Simon-Str. 12, 72072, Tübingen, Germany

    Elizabeth Bear & Xiaobin Chen

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  1. Elizabeth Bear
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  2. Xiaobin Chen
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Correspondence to Elizabeth Bear .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Ning Wang

  2. University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    Genaro Rebolledo-Mendez

  3. University of Leeds, Leeds, UK

    Vania Dimitrova

  4. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA

    Noboru Matsuda

  5. UNED, Madrid, Spain

    Olga C. Santos

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Bear, E., Chen, X. (2023). Evaluating a Conversational Agent for Second Language Learning Aligned with the School Curriculum. In: Wang, N., Rebolledo-Mendez, G., Dimitrova, V., Matsuda, N., Santos, O.C. (eds) Artificial Intelligence in Education. Posters and Late Breaking Results, Workshops and Tutorials, Industry and Innovation Tracks, Practitioners, Doctoral Consortium and Blue Sky. AIED 2023. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 1831. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-36336-8_22

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-36336-8_22

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