Why Students Hesitate to Speak a New Language

As language teachers, we can all agree that we want students to leave our classrooms confidently using the target language. However, there are many challenges that prevent them from even using the language within our classrooms. Factors like differing abilities and needs, lack of experience and practice, and general stress and anxiety cause students to be hesitant. So many things can raise the affective filter that prevents students from feeling comfortable.

With all the tasks that teachers need to complete every day, how can we also incorporate individualized strategies to help students build their confidence using the target language?

Nualang: The Secret Tool to Make Language Learning Fun and Effective

Let’s explore the platform that empowers teachers to support students through these challenges—Nualang!

Mastering Vocabulary with Personalized Practice

The first step in building students' comfort with a new language is for them to simply master the vocabulary. The challenge is that all students learn differently, and some need more interactions with new words and phrases than others. This is where Nualang goes beyond traditional methods, offering students engaging, interactive opportunities to practice a new language.

Nualang’s Approach to Stress-Free Language Learning

The first tasks that Nualang offers for any lesson are translation, listening, and pronunciation with new vocabulary. Students complete these exercises on their own, at their own pace, with as many repetitions as they need.

Feedback is immediate and comes from friendly little helpers called Nualas, creating a low-stress environment where students are more likely to take risks. These exercises provide the perfect opportunity for students to get in the individualized practice that they need before moving on to using the language in interpersonal interactions.

Students Can Practice Vocabulary Through Conversation Roleplay

Now that students know the vocabulary, sometimes they need help getting started with using that vocabulary. How many times have you heard a student say, “I know what I want to say, I just don’t know how to start”? The next exercise that Nualang offers models usage of these new words and phrases within the context of an interpersonal interaction.

Roleplays are pre-written conversations between two characters, incorporating the new vocabulary from the lesson. Teachers can even customize characters with their own images, adding a personal touch to the content, or allow our chatty little helpers, the Nualas, to take the leading roles. First, students observe the conversation. Next, there are several options for students to participate in the same conversation ranging in difficulty from multiple choice selection all the way up to speaking as one of the actors. These exercises also offer immediate feedback to students.

By experiencing this example of new vocabulary in a conversational context, students gain the confidence to try it out on their own.

Nualang Chatbots Offer Interactive Conversation Practice

The last individual practice exercise that Nualang offers is Chatbots. Chatbots are simulated conversations, like an AP^®-style task. The Chatbot asks students questions based on the vocabulary and topic of the lesson. Students can either type or speak their answers. Now that students have seen a model of an interpersonal interaction using these words and phrases, they are ready to make their own sentences using the same content in a safe and friendly environment. In just a few exercises, they can increase their confidence in the target language!

Fostering Classroom Conversations with Nualang Discuss

Once students feel comfortable conversing with a Chatbot, they might feel ready to speak to their classmates. Discuss is a feature in Nualang that gives teachers the power to create a discussion assignment, set the parameters of the conversation, and assign groups. Students log in to their own devices at the same time as their group members and record the assigned conversation. Discuss creates a recording of the conversation, generates a transcript, and delivers it all to the teacher. To make the conversations fun and engaging for students, Nualang offers interesting backgrounds for student videos or Nuala avatars if students choose not to be on screen. Discuss allows for easy data collection for teachers and another safe and easy-going environment for students.

Level Up with Nualang LIVE!

Now that everyone in the class is an expert at the lesson vocabulary, it is time to play a game together! Nualang LIVE is an exciting and friendly competition amongst students. Here’s how it works:

• Nualang creates engaging games for teachers using pre-existing content, allowing teachers to launch interactive live games with ease—no extra preparation required.
• Students join from their own Nualang accounts, preventing any unwanted drop-ins from other classes.
• With a variety of game modes to choose from—listening, translation, roleplay, and more—teachers can target specific skills while students stay engaged and enjoy live, interactive games.
• Points are awarded to students based on the speed and accuracy of their responses through dynamic scoring.
• The top three students for each game are awarded medals.

While very engaging for students, this is also a great formative assessment for teachers to gauge the progress of their students in a lesson!

Efficient Classroom Management Tools for Teachers

In addition to providing individualized support for students, Nualang also helps teachers manage their classrooms! Nualang’s progress tab allows teachers to quickly gather information on what their students have completed and how they performed.

Discuss records conversations and generates transcripts so that teachers have evidence of student progress. Teachers have the option of customizing content for their classrooms by adding courses from the community content or by creating their own content. AI can also help teachers by rating student Discuss interactions and generating vocabulary lists, Roleplays, and Chatbots for courses. Nualang saves teachers time by serving as activities for station work in class, homework, make-up work, differentiated practice, and so much more.

Watch the "All About Nualang” Webinar! Ready to dive deeper into how Nualang can transform your language teaching experience? Watch the full recording of our webinar, “All About Nualang,” to see how these powerful features can boost your students’ language skills and make your classroom even more fun and engaging!

Click the link below to watch the recording now: