Effects of ASR-based websites on EFL learners’ vocabulary, speaking anxiety, and language enjoyment

A vocabulary deficit negatively affects students’ language performance. Emotions such as speaking anxiety and language enjoyment in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom can affect students’ achievements as well. We investigated the effects of two Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR)-based websites, I Love Indonesia (ILI) and NovoLearning (NOVO), on students’ vocabulary knowledge, speaking anxiety, and language enjoyment. A total of 232 secondary school students in Indonesia participated in our quasi-experimental study. They were divided into three groups: two experimental groups received ASR-based intervention (ILI, NOVO), and a control group attended regular classes. Findings revealed that the students from the two experimental groups (ILI and NOVO) significantly outperformed those of the control group: both websites successfully increased the students’ knowledge of the targeted vocabulary (40 words), reduced the students’ level of speaking anxiety, and stimulated the students’ language enjoyment. Additionally, we interviewed 12 of these students and three English teachers. These qualitative outcomes corroborate the quantitative conclusions. Future studies should investigate further benefits of ASR-based websites on speaking skills, especially for long term effects, with in-depth evaluations, as this would help teachers to optimally design and adapt these systems for foreign language learning.