English as an international language and Google's pronunciation tool

Introduction: The Google pronunciation tool is widely used by English teachers to improve students' pronunciation, and is also, and mainly, an accessible tool for online teaching, as it is available free of charge to all users of the platform. Objective: This article questions how beneficial or harmful this use can be for teaching speaking skills. Materials and Methods: This tool was analyzed in this article in light of the concept of English as a Lingua Franca (ILF), which proposes a decolonial look at the teaching-learning of the language, untying the concept of proficiency from the perfect imitation of the pronunciation of natives of the countries of greater hegemonic power, mainly the United States and England. We explore the evolution of English teaching in Brazil, highlighting a post-structuralist approach to language, which questions the traditional view of language as a structured system ready to be “acquired”. In this sense, a flexible approach is advocated that values ​​the different variants of English, including that spoken by non-natives. In this article, we carried out an investigation into the use of the tool by a student at level B1 (pre-intermediate). Images of the screen were recorded showing the tool's assessment of the student's pronunciation. Results: The Google tool, although useful, is criticized here for restricting itself to prestigious variants and promoting a purist view of pronunciation. The corrections proposed by the tool demonstrate a restricted view of the language, suggesting modifications that would not interfere with the intelligibility of the student's speech. Conclusion: We propose an expansion of pronunciation options and a more flexible approach to assessing speech intelligibility, reflecting linguistic diversity. These considerations are urgent given the importance of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in contemporary teaching.