Since ChatGPT’s public release in November 2022, generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has rapidly transformed English as a Foreign/Second Language (EFL/ESL) education, yet its precise impact on learning outcomes remains subject to debate. This systematic review and meta-analysis synthesizes evidence from 33 pooled empirical studies and 6 narrative-synthesis studies examining GenAI’s effects on language learning outcomes from November 2022 to March 2026. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, we searched multiple databases, applied a pre-specified effect-size verification rule to screen for reporting anomalies and calculated random-effects models for three outcome domains. Results revealed a large overall effect (Hedges’ g = 1.253, 95% CI [0.954, 1.542], I² = 94.4%). Language performance outcomes showed strong effects (g = 1.197) with substantial heterogeneity (I² = 88.4%). Affective outcomes demonstrated a large but highly heterogeneous effect (g = 1.3347, I² = 98.3%) while self-regulation outcomes yielded a large but non-significant preliminary estimate (g = 1.400, p = .187, I² = 99.1%). Research design and intervention duration emerged as significant moderators with experimental designs producing the strongest effects. The literature is overwhelmingly concentrated at the tertiary level (87.9%), and a tertiary-only sensitivity analysis confirmed that pooled estimates are not driven by aggregation across developmental stages. Egger’s test indicated no evidence of publication bias in the corrected dataset (p = .49). Evidence certainty was rated MODERATE using GRADE criteria. These findings support GenAI’s effectiveness in EFL/ESL learning while emphasizing the importance of implementation design, the context-sensitivity of affective outcomes, and the need for sustained metacognitive scaffolding to promote self-regulation.
High-immersion virtual reality (HiVR) offers engaging experiences to foreign language learners, and numerous empirical studies support its effectiveness for language learning. However, implementation of this technology in school-based language teaching is scarce and requires comprehensive teacher training as well as pedagogical guidelines. Specifically, foreign language teachers need to develop their technological pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) to align language pedagogy with the affordances of virtual reality (VR) headsets and applications. Based on an approach to language teaching with VR that is anchored in Technology-Mediated Task-Based Language Teaching (TMTBLT), this qualitative study investigates (1) how the integration of HiVR into lesson plans combines language pedagogy and technological affordances, and (2) how pre-service teachers’ TPACK develops through participation in a university course with a focus on lesson planning. First, fifteen lesson plans were analyzed qualitatively. Then, participants’ TPACK development was assessed through lesson plan quality ratings and a thematic analysis of a pre-survey, reflection journals, and group interviews conducted after the course. The findings demonstrate the importance of lesson planning and micro-teaching for the development of a highly integrated TPACK, and alignment of HiVR-tasks with basic principles of TMTBLT. The study outlines further directions for research and teaching with HiVR.
Mind-wandering, characterized by a shift of attention away from the task at hand, poses a significant challenge to effective reading by inducing shallow processing. Despite its frequent occurrence in learning contexts, its impact on second language (L2) reading comprehension, particularly in mobile-assisted contexts, remains underexplored. This study aims to bridge this gap by investigating how mind-wandering influences mobile-assisted L2 reading comprehension and further exploring the moderating roles of cognitive and affective factors. Specifically, it examines the extent to which working memory capacity and reading emotions (i.e., enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom) shape the relationship between mind-wandering and reading comprehension. A sample of 208 first-year college students learning English as an L2 completed a reading comprehension test, working memory assessments, and questionnaire surveys measuring reading emotions. Linear regression analyses reveal that students who experience more mind-wandering perform worse in mobile-assisted L2 reading. Furthermore, moderation analyses indicate that reading emotions, particularly enjoyment and boredom, significantly moderate the effect of mind-wandering on L2 reading comprehension, whereas working memory capacity does not. These findings suggest that affective factors, especially enjoyment and boredom, may have a more prominent moderating role than working memory capacity in the relationship between mind-wandering and comprehension in mobile-assisted L2 reading environments.
Research has found that high-immersion virtual reality (HiVR) can improve language learners’ speaking skills (Dooly et al., 2023; Thrasher, 2022a, 2022b). However, most prior studies have relied on short-term interventions (Dhimolea et al., 2022), resulting in limited evidence from control-experimental designs examining the effects of sustained HiVR integration. To address this gap, this semester-long control-experimental study measured how participation in a HiVR-integrated instructional model impacted foreign language anxiety (FLA), motivation, willingness to communicate (WTC), and oral proficiency over a 10-week period. Seventy-one students in a university-level beginner Spanish course participated in the study. The control group (n = 38) followed a fully online course with traditional homework, while the experimental group (n = 33) had two hours of their online homework replaced each week with HiVR activities. All participants completed a language background questionnaire and pre- and post- FLA, motivation, and WTC questionnaires. Recordings of participants’ final oral exams were analyzed for complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) features to evaluate improvements in speaking abilities. Results suggest that the HiVR-integrated instructional model mitigated FLA, increased WTC, and positively impacted speaking skills.
Within L2 writing research, pre-task planning has gained increasing attention over the past couple of decades, yet multimodal approaches in beginning-level classrooms remain underexplored. This technology-in-practice paper reports the integration of collaborative multimodal visualization reflections (MVRs) as a pre-task planning strategy in a college-level beginning L2 Spanish course. Using a free online drawing and painting tool, students created visual representations of their current understanding of Spanish reflexive verbs prior to completing an individual writing task. Potential benefits observed include learners’ engagement with multiple semiotic modes, the facilitation of discussion about the target structure, increased peer interaction, the promotion of metacognitive awareness, and the support of deeper conceptual development. This paper details the MVR procedures and discusses its pedagogical benefits as well as challenges related to technology use and task design. It concludes with practical insights to guide instructors interested in implementing multimodal pre-task planning activities in beginning L2 contexts.
