AI-Supported, VR-Based Competence Development for Future Professionals in German as a Technical and Professional Language

• Applicant: Professorin Alice Gruber, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: Applied Linguistics, Computational Linguistics
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 554864062

The project develops an innovative teaching and learning concept that combines Virtual Reality (VR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), supported by scientific research. It creates AI-powered VR modules for job-related German language instruction. These modules enable future professionals to acquire practical language skills and intercultural communication competence through realistic workplace simulations. The VR scenarios reflect the requirements of fields such as metalwork, electrical engineering, and welding. They will be developed in close cooperation with the IHK Academy Swabia and the UniTyLab at Heilbronn University. The study investigates how VR-based learning affects key aspects of occupational language acquisition, such as reading comprehension, the effectiveness of language support measures like glossaries and AI-based chatbots, and whether reduced foreign language anxiety in VR environments transfers to real workplace communication, thus supporting confident language use on the job. Another focus lies on the use of AI-driven chatbots that incorporate regional linguistic features. The research examines whether these chatbots promote understanding of regional varieties of German. It also explores how VR-based scenarios foster intercultural communicative competence. The study applies a broad mixed-methods approach, using standardised tests, eye tracking, video analysis, interviews, and observations to gain a comprehensive understanding of learning processes in immersive environments. The results aim to contribute to the further development of VR-supported language learning and to inform future technology-enhanced approaches to language training in vocational education. The project supports the digitalisation of vocational training, the evidence-based design of innovative learning formats, and the integration of international professionals into the German-speaking labour market. It also addresses research gaps in language learning in immersive environments and strengthens interdisciplinary links between language pedagogy, educational research, and human-computer interaction.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants (Transfer Project)
• Application Partner: IHK Akademie Schwaben; Weiterbildung GmbH