Sprechende Chatbots im Fach(fremd)sprachenunterricht und im berufsbezogenen Fremdsprachenunterricht

This paper addresses the problem of verbal interaction and language mediation in specialized language instruction in relation to a system design of the so-called ‘talking chatbots’. The first part includes terminological clarification. The analysis is limited to the most relevant terms: chatbot, oral interaction and oral language mediation. The second part shows the extent of which the two areas appear: interdisciplinary language teaching and vocational language learning, overlapping with each other, and the role played by the linguistic ability to act. The subsequent parts focus on oral interaction and language interpretation, and their modeling through digital dialogue systems, followed by a conclusion and a brief outlook on didactic implications. The basis for the considerations are, inter alia, Searle’s theory of speech acts and Siemens’ connectivism.