TalkAbroad

Abstract

TalkAbroad is a web-based platform that provides access to online conversations with native speakers of Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Arabic, and Japanese. According to the website talkabroad.com, “TalkAbroad is primarily aimed at classrooms looking to provide short and affordable “immersion experiences”. The platform is designed to be used by classes and provides instructor tools for the organization of student conversations and implementation of assignments.

The effect of NNS–NNS and NNS–NS videoconferencing on the development of second language confidence

“…As elucidated in Henshaw (2016) and Trego (2020), TalkAbroad (http://talkabroad.com), is a service that organizes 15-and 30-min conversations between language students and trained NSs, affording a number of benefits to learners such as supplementary conversation practice and access to speakers with authentic cultural knowledge and native language competence. The NSs on this platform use strategies to engage students in conversation by asking openended and follow-up questions; they also provide feedback on language forms when requested, but are not trained to correct the students because communication, or the exchange of ideas, is the central aim.…”