Supporting English Language Skill Development With AI Avatars
Discover how Indiana University Bloomington is leveraging VirtualSpeech AI Avatars to support international graduate students in meeting spoken English proficiency standards.
Highlights
117
practice sessions over 8 weeks
Realism
Realistic practice in a safe environment
21.5%
gains in communication performance
Scale
Scalable and flexible for educators
Customer Introduction
Indiana University Bloomington, home to over 48,000 students, one of the United States' premier institutions, and is at the forefront of research across a plethora of fields.
From medicine and policy-making to technology and entrepreneurship, and everything in between, the University drives its students to make real-world impact and excel in their careers.
The Goal
Dr. Beatrix Burghardt, Lecturer in Second Language Studies, is responsible for preparing international graduate student instructors to meet the spoken English proficiency standards required for teaching at a U.S. university, standards directly connected to their academic employment.
Her multilingual cohort, which included students from countries such as China, India, and Korea, required linguistic support as they prepared for their final oral proficiency exams.
With traditional, time-intensive teaching methods no longer feasible, Dr. Burghardt needed a scalable solution that could extend practice beyond the classroom, keep students motivated, and provide measurable evidence of their progress.
“Virtual Speech provided the proper bridge for my graduate students to master the nuances of high-stakes academic interactions in a low-stakes virtual environment. I was also thrilled to find that working with Keyla allowed many to discover that learning in the virtual environment can look, sound, and feel remarkably human.”
Dr. Beatrix Burghardt, Lecturer in Second Language Studies, Indiana University
The Solution
To meet these challenges, Dr. Burghardt integrated VirtualSpeech into her course as a flexible and scalable speaking practice environment. Students completed targeted assignments within the platform, receiving instant feedback and continuous performance tracking to support their development.
A key implementation decision was selecting the AI Avatar. The chosen avatar was Keyla, whose neutral American accent aligned with the expectations of U.S. instructional English. This ensured students practiced with a linguistically appropriate and relevant model.
The impact was clear: students found the tool motivating, accessible, and easy to incorporate into their demanding academic schedules. Many completed their practice early, demonstrating strong engagement and an appreciation for the structured, repeatable exercises.
During a semester marked by limited resources and high instructional demands, VirtualSpeech offered a scalable, engaging, and evidence-based solution that advanced both instructional goals and student success.
Results and Benefits
The first stage of this exciting partnership between Indiana University Bloomington and VirtualSpeech ran over the course of 8 weeks.
The collaboration had great benefits for both the faculty and students, resulting in:
- Students that were more engaged, motivated, and eager to practice.
- The ability for faculty to incorporate realistic training into busy academic schedules at scale.
- Tangible, measurable improvements in just 8 weeks, with an impressive average skill increase of 2.75 on a 10-point scale
