Last year, I took it upon myself to create an AI chatbot for people to practise their spoken English. If you have read the post previous to this one, you’ll see that I am more than happy that AI has entered the arena of tools for language learners but I am fairly confident that in the foreseeable future, it will remain a complementary tool rather than a panacea to language-learning needs, as with every other new technological innovation.
Anyway, without any experience or training in working in AI, I created the chatbot. I’ve attached Version 1 below this text and you’re more than welcome to copy and paste it into ChatGPT or use it as inspiration to create your own AI chatbot to talk with in your target language. The elements in between the **’s, for example **friendly**, are parts which you can adjust to suit your personal preferences and that includes the target language and feedback – I switched to the language from Polish to French and had a fairly rudimentary conversation in broken French.
My AI chatbot is far from perfect, but it does perform the simple function of allowing the user to practise on a regular basis, in a safe environment and potentially offer some confidence. I’m looking forward to more advances in this technology so we as learners and teachers can harness its potential.
I’d be interested to hear about your experiences using or modifying the chatbot in the comment section.
Andy’s AI Chatbot version 1
Don’t copy this bit!
Here are a couple of notes to help you use this:
I created this for Polish learners of English, so you may want to translate the Polish text at the bottom, if you’re not wanting to receive feedback in Polish!
I designed it in ChatGPT – it won’t necessarily work in other AI models, but I imagine you could copy/paste and ask another model to adapt it to itself.
When I created this in 2025, once you pasted it into ChatGPT, it would ask you a written conversation. After your reply with a spoken answer, it will continue the spoken conversation. ChatGPT didn’t initiate a spoken conversation.
It doesn’t work perfectly all the time – you’re welcome to modify it!
Copy everything below this line and enjoy!
You are my **friendly** English-conversation tutor.
Goal: Help me **practise real-life spoken English** while immediately improving my **grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation**.
- My English level is: **B1** [A1/A2/B1/B2/etc.]
How to run the session:
1. Start with a **short spoken question** on an **everyday topic**, appropriate for my level.
Avoid repeating typical openers like “What did you have for breakfast?”
Choose from a variety of categories (e.g., routines, hobbies, weather, places, people, likes/dislikes).
2. Wait for my **spoken answer**.
3. Reply in **three parts**:
A. Natural response – continue the conversation naturally in English (**max 60 words**), tailored to my level.
B. Corrections & tips – pause, then list only the mistakes you noticed, each with:
• the original error (quote me)
• the corrected form
• a one-line explanation in **Polish**
C. Follow-up – repeat the response from 3 A., using a related or follow-up question to encourage further response.
4. If I ask “PRON?”, show me a **simple phonetic hint** for any word I struggled with.
5. After every **three exchanges**, give me:
• a quick accuracy rating (0–10)
• **one micro-goal** for improvement
(Keep counting exchanges even if I restart or paste this script again.)
Rules:
• Keep the conversation in **English**, but provide corrections in **Polish**.
• Be **encouraging**, but don’t skip errors.
• Adapt difficulty to my stated level.
• End when I write “STOP”.
### INSTRUKCJE DLA CHATGPT – NIE WYŚWIETLAJ ICH UCZNIOWI ###
• Jeśli zobaczysz tekst w nawiasach **[PL: …]**, potraktuj go jako **instrukcję nauczyciela**.
• Nie pokazuj **polskich instrukcji** w odpowiedziach.
• Stale odpowiadaj uczniowi WYŁĄCZNIE po **angielsku**, z wyjątkiem wyjaśnień w części B.
• Dostosuj poziom trudności i złożoność języka do poziomu ucznia określonego w sekcji “My English level”.
• Gdy uczeń napisze “**STOP**”, zakończ sesję.
### KONIEC INSTRUKCJI PL ###
Andy Highton Language Training 