Artificial intelligence is everywhere in education right now and ESOL classrooms are no exception. But as the technology becomes more accessible, a debate is sharpening in the sector: is AI a genuine asset for language learners, or is it actually undermining the learning process?
The most pointed recent contribution comes from Dr Nafisa Baba-Ahmed, writing in FE Week in late April 2026. Marking a set of entry-level writing tasks, she observed that AI translation tools were producing polished-looking work that concealed rather than revealed learners’ actual language development. Her argument is clear: translation tools “promise fluency, but they’re stripping away the messy process where real language learning happens.” ¹ For ESOL teachers, this is not an abstract concern. It’s at the centre of how progress is assessed and how learners are supported.
This practitioner unease is echoed more broadly across the English language teaching community. A survey of ELT professionals identified “human connection” as the defining trend for 2026, with many teachers expressing concern about growing learner isolation and pushing back towards face-to-face, relationship-centred approaches. Specific worries were raised around safeguarding, responsible use, and, related to the above, the risk that readily available translation tools erode learners’ motivation to develop their own English skills at all. ²
However, the picture is not straightforward. A digital inclusion model developed by Liverpool City Council’s ESOL Action Hub offers a more constructive vision of what EdTech integration can look like. Rather than allowing technology to replace language learning, the project embedded digital literacy directly into ESOL lessons, adapting writing tasks to include email composition, linking vocabulary sessions to navigating NHS websites, and using speech recognition software to support pronunciation practice. Crucially, digital tools were used to complement structured, teacher-led lessons – not substitute them. ³
This tension maps directly onto a live policy debate. The government’s Protecting What Matters paper and the DfE’s ESOL review both float digital delivery as a potential solution to the scale of unmet need. The Bell Foundation has been clear in response: while digital tools can complement provision, they cannot replace classroom-based tuition led by trained teachers. ⁴
The message from the sector is consistent: AI and EdTech have a role to play in ESOL, but only when they serve the learner, not when they serve as a shortcut around the hard work of learning.
The Language of Change