Learning with robots: the potential of social robots from the perspective of language education

This article discusses research on the use of “social robots” in early language education. The paper consists of three main sections. The first section briefly describes what social robots are and provides the theoretical rationale for their applicability in language education. The second section introduces different empirical works, while highlighting established findings and the gaps in the literature. Finally, drawing on my recent research on gestures and individual differences, I discuss the prospects of language education and child–robot interaction (CRI) and provide recommendations for future research. Social robots have the potential to meet needs that human teachers or other digital devices cannot. However, research remains limited and is in the phase of exploring different possibilities. The lack of clear support for the effectiveness of social robots should be considered a good research opportunity. I invite scholars from diverse backgrounds to join this critical and exciting effort.