Teaching oral practice in a foreign language to agricultural university students using artificial intelligence based technical solutions

Importance. Artificial intelligence based technical solutions possess significant lingua-didactic potential, enabling the development of components of professional foreign language communicative competence within the framework of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). However, despite the existence of research devoted to the integration of AI in developing speech abilities and forming students' language skills, the issue of developing oral communication skills in the process of teaching a professional foreign language to students of an agricultural university has not been the subject of a separate study. The aim of this research is to develop a methodology for teaching foreign language conversational practice to students based on AI-powered technical solutions.Materials and Methods. The experimental study involved students majoring in 36.05.01 “Veterinary Medicine” at Voronezh State Agrarian University named after Emperor Peter the Great. Participants in the control group (N = 43) are taught using the traditional contentt and language integrated learning (CLIL) methodology, while those in the experimental group (N = 43) additionally completed a task once a week aimed at engaging in foreign language oral practice with a virtual agent, which is an AI-based web platform, Character.AI. The focus of the research is on nine oral communication skills development. Statistical data analysis is performed using Student’s t-test.Results and Discussion. AI-powered technical solutions, has proven its effectiveness in developing the following skills: making inquiries on professional topics (t = 2.07; p < 0.05), clarifying information on professional topics (t = 3.56; p < 0.05), presenting information on a professional topic upon request (t = 2.89; p < 0.05), answering questions on the topic (t = 2.85; p < 0.05), expressing agreement on the issue under discussion (t = 3.33; p < 0.05), expressing disagreement on the issue under discussion (t = 2.61; p < 0.05), arguing one's point of view (t = 2.07; p < 0.05). However, the experiment did not demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology in developing such skills as initiating a conversation and exchanging greetings, or closing a conversation. This is attributed to the fact that these skills are already highly developed in the students prior to their participation in the instruction.Conclusion. The novelty of the research lies in the staged methodology development for teaching foreign language conversational practice to students, utilizing artificial intelligence-based technical solutions, the effectiveness of which has been empirically demonstrated. The prospective value of the study resides in the further investigation of the potential of AI-powered technical solutions for the systematic development of students’ professional competencies.