Can AI fix foreign language pronounciation problems?

Of these, pronunciation is often the biggest challenge. What native speakers do effortlessly can feel impossible for language learners.

This is why I understand the argument that teachers with poor pronunciation should not teach. Linguistic research identifies five key pronunciation challenges: interference from the native language, unfamiliar phonetic rules, limited vocabulary, lack of practice, and fear of speaking.

I struggle with all five.

I have never been good with languages, and so even when I put in extra effort I could only achieve average results.

However, I had to learn not one but three foreign languages: English, Russian and Chinese.

English and Russian use alphabets somewhat similar to Vietnamese, but I still catch myself pronouncing words with Vietnamese intonations.

Chinese is even harder. The pinyin system has around 1,300 pronunciations for 10,000 common simplified characters, meaning each pronunciation corresponds to about seven homophones.

To make things worse, consonants like "z," "zh," "c," "ch," "j," and "q" are introduced as similar to the Vietnamese "ch" or "tr" though in Vietnamese, most speakers pronounce "ch" and "tr" the same way.

Sometimes, when listening to songs, I mistake "z" for "s" or "x."

A Chinese colleague once corrected me explaining that "z" in pinyin sounds more like "dz" or "ds," with a barely audible "d" and is nothing like the Vietnamese "ch."

This shows just how difficult pronunciation can be even in a language structurally similar to Vietnamese.

A man using ChatGPT on his computer. Illustration photo by Pexels

Pronunciation challenges stem from many factors: intonation, pitch, syllable length, consonants, stress patterns, sound shifts, nasal sounds, silent letters, and, most importantly, articulation techniques.

Despite regional variations, every language has a standardized accent. Vietnamese has the Hanoi accent, Mandarin has Standard Chinese, English has Queen’s English, and Spanish has the Castilian standard.

Learning standard pronunciation makes communication easier than speaking a hybridized version like "Vinglish" (Vietnamese-accented English).

But if language pronunciation standards were strictly enforced, most Vietnamese school teachers would not qualify to teach English.

Consider the IELTS speaking test. A score of 6 means the speaker is understandable but makes pronunciation mistakes that cause confusion.

A score of 8 indicates fluency where regional accents no longer affect comprehension.

Very few Vietnamese learners reach an 8, making it impossible to staff schools entirely with fully proficient English teachers.

However, I am glad to see the younger generations getting better at English.

The challenge nevertheless is that those good at English rarely become teachers, while those who do teach have made little progress in pronunciation.

Standardizing language pronunciation among Vietnam's language teachers would require massive reform, one that reaches from cities to remote areas and is backed by extensive phonetics research.

I once thought this was impossible, but then I saw what AI can do.

AI can take over much of what language teachers do. It does not just provide pronunciation samples; it analyzes sound frequencies, compares learners' pronunciation with native speakers and pinpoints mistakes.

Some paid apps offer this, but many free ones work just as well.

Beyond that, AI can simulate real conversations across multiple languages. My Chinese teacher uses AI to practice different speaking tones—arguing with an AI version of Sun Wukong for aggressive speech or chatting with an AI Chinese elder to learn classical vocabulary.

There is even an AI bot for practicing flirtation in Mandarin.

As AI gets smarter, learners can develop more natural, flexible speech patterns.

English learners no longer need to approach foreigners at Hoan Kiem Lake to practice since AI can now be customized for specific accents, speech speeds, personalities, and education levels.

Instead of retraining teachers, education authorities can issue guidelines on using AI for pronunciation training, which will be a faster, cheaper solution with minimal need for pedagogical research.

But AI can only solve half the problem. The rest depends on learners—their passion, courage and willingness to step out of their comfort zones to master correct pronunciation.

*To Thuc is a lecturer at James Cook University in Australia.