Emergent bilingual students benefit from AI-powered real-time translation tools

As linguistic diversity increases in classrooms across the United States, educators face the challenge of ensuring all students can access learning regardless of their English proficiency. Emergent bilingual students, or English learners, now comprise 10.6 percent of public school students in the country, totaling over 5.3 million individuals. This is a notable increase from 9.4 percent a decade ago.

Language barriers can significantly impact these students' academic performance and social interactions. Traditional support methods like peer translation or bilingual aides often fall short due to limited resources and time constraints in busy classrooms. Consequently, educators are exploring new strategies, such as AI-powered translation tools, to provide equitable participation for all students.

One promising tool is the Timekettle X1 AI Interpreter Hub, which offers real-time bidirectional translation through earbuds or on-screen text. EdSurge spoke with members of Olney Independent School District (OISD) in Texas about their experiences using this technology.

Elianis T., an emergent bilingual student at OISD, shared her experience: "Before using the tool, I couldn’t ask questions or talk to other students in the classroom." She added that it has helped her communicate better with teachers and classmates and boosted her confidence during group projects.

Alyssa Betts, district emergent bilingual coordinator at OISD, noted that "the X1 lets us reach our multilingual learners more accurately and reliably as they adjust to our classrooms." Seventh-grade science teacher Veronica Fobbs observed increased class participation among her students and appreciated that "students are not only seen but also heard — and more importantly understood."

While recognizing the benefits of AI translation technology, Fobbs emphasized its role as a bridge rather than a replacement for language learning: "I encourage written and verbal responses in English as much as possible."

Betts mentioned plans to create a usage timeline for the X1 devices to encourage language acquisition by limiting long-term reliance on them.

The Timekettle X1 has also been useful outside classroom settings. Betts used it during a Language Proficiency Assessment Committee meeting with a parent who was able to receive real-time feedback from teachers.

Fobbs highlighted its role in reducing message delays due to decreased need for human translators: "This year, we were able to use the presentation mode available on the X1 devices for our end-of-year awards ceremonies," allowing non-English speaking parents to understand proceedings fully.