Immerse insights:
- The new unlimited membership means unlimited access to live classes and events, AI practice, and more - on a Quest 2 headset or through your computer desktop.
- New features expand on Immerse’s 4 cornerstones of immersive language learning: Learn, Connect, Practice, and Play
- Engaging in different types of learning and practice builds a strong foundation so you can speakEnglish, Spanish, or French with confidence and fluency.
On August 14, 2023, Immerse launched its biggest and most exciting update yet. With the new Unlimited Membership, learners gain unlimited access to live language classes and events, AI practice, and more.
The 4 Cornerstones of Language Learning
Immerse recognizes that successful language learning doesn’t come from doing just one thing.
If you want to learn to speak with confidence, you need variety - time spent learning new things and time to practice what you already know, opportunities to interact with other speakers and the chance to practice on your own.
That’s why Immerse’s VR language learning platform is based on four cornerstones: Learn, Connect, Practice, and Play.
A Time to Learn
Immerse classes are available throughout the day to fit your schedule, and all are led by highly experienced language instructors.
These aren’t your run-of-the-mill language classes, though.
When you think of a language class, you might imagine rows of desks in a classroom or a grid of tiny faces in Zoom windows. At Immerse, it’s a whole different story.
In Immerse, the “classrooms” are 40+ fully interactive virtual settings where you can roam around with your fellow learners and do things like mix a drink, fly a kite, fry an egg, or toast a marshmallow. These VR scenes are accessible through a Quest 2 headset or through your computer desktop, and they’re where your instructor will guide you through the steps of learning real communication skills such as asking someone about their hobbies, getting directions, or offering to help out.
Everything your instructor teaches you, like new phrases and grammar notes, will be sent to a popup screen on your wrist so you can refer to them everywhere you go in the scene - and you can even access them later during other classes or in your homeroom.
That’s right - your teacher takes notes for you, and you can never forget to bring them to class!
At Immerse, we believe in the importance of self-directed learning. You get to decide what to learn next because within your level, the classes are self-contained learning modules. Within each level - Foundations, Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced - there are new classes every week to choose from.
Each class is focused on a meaningful skill, like introducing someone or using common irregular past tense verbs to tell about an experience you had. You can take classes in any order, and over time you’ll see your overall confidence and ability grow.
Having the freedom to select your own classes means no worrying about falling behind if you have a busy week. More importantly though, it means you choose the language skills you need to work on right now.
About to travel to Mexico? Maybe you should choose a class on ordering from a menu. Need to use Spanish in a health-care setting? Sign up for a class in the doctor’s office.
Many learners find this self-directed approach makes classes more interesting and better helps them reach their personal language learning goals. In fact, learner autonomy is associated with more successful language learning.
It’s no wonder that research has shown Immerse is a much faster and more effective way to learn a language.
A Time to Connect
Opportunities to practice speaking with other people are essential to actually learning a language. This is why Immerse offers live events where you and your fellow learners can interact, chat, and role-play in our virtual scenes, with support from an instructor whenever you need it.
Imagine chatting with fellow language learners while browsing in a shop, mixing drinks at a bar, or exploring for treasure. You can’t think of the word you want to say, but an instructor is right there to help you.
This type of opportunity is unique to Immerse.
Immerse events take place throughout the day and in a variety of scenes. No need to sign up in advance or even to show up on time.
Just pop in, mingle with your fellow learners, and engage in a conversation or role-play in the language you’re learning - with an instructor right there to keep the conversation rolling and help you out if you don’t know what to say.
Each event has a theme so you can practice communicating about a particular topic. And every event is open to all levels, so you’ll get a chance to learn from more fluent speakers and even help others.
When learners practice together and support each other, they build community. This reminds you why you’re learning a language in the first place, and it speeds up your language learning, too.
Just as Immerse classes are a great place to learn new language skills, Immerse’s live events provide the crucial opportunity to use what you’ve been learning to connect with other people. And there’s no better way to build your language skills than to get talking.
A Time to Practice
Immerse recognizes the benefits of practicing outside of class, and we’ve provided a variety of ways to do this as well.
Your newly redesigned homeroom is the place where you can access opportunities for individual practice.
Practice
Choose the Practice button on the left-hand side to enter scenes where you can interact with Immerse’s new AI avatars.
Since these are AI, they’re not just following scripts. Their speech will adapt to your level, and they will respond to whatever you say. This means that you’ll have new conversations with them every time.
You can practice with the AI avatars on your own to build your speaking confidence. Or invite some friends and let the fun begin!
Practice scenes are available 24/7, so jump in whenever you feel the urge for a little practice.
Review
The You button on the left-hand side is where you can find all the notes your teacher sent to your wristwatch during class. Review regularly, and skim them right before your next class so you can refresh your memory and use what you know.
Discover New Vocabulary
Immerse provides you with multiple ways to discover new Spanish, French, or English vocabulary.
Our latest vocabulary resource is the new text translation tool introduced with the August 14 update.
The text translation tool allows you to click on any word in the language you’re learning when you come across text in AI convos, class notes, in-scene content, and more. When you click, you’ll get a translation, synonyms, and even example sentences.
And you still have access to our earlier vocabulary learning tools, too!
The You button now gives you access to the dictionary of common objects, along with your class notes.
You also still have a backpack full of tools, including the vocabulary scanner. Scan items anywhere in Immerse to learn their names.
A Time to Play
Immerse Members who have been around for a while are used to heading to “The Commons” to meet friends and play language games. This area is now accessible through the Homeroom button labeled “Play.”
Play is more than just fun - it’s actually an important part of learning a language, too. Research studies have shown that play is a critical component of language learning.
Playfulness and language games are good for a variety of reasons. First, they help reduce anxiety and increase motivation. They also embed language learning in social interaction, which taps into the neural network that your brain naturally uses to learn language.
So click on the Play button on the left-hand side in your homeroom. Many of our games, like target practice and whack-a-mole, can be played solo or with friends, and they aim to build vocabulary by teaching you new words and improving your recall speed.
They also add a physical element to vocabulary learning, which is proven to improve vocabulary retention.
Other games, like Pictionary and other word guessing games, are meant for group play and tap into the power of social learning and let you practice using language creatively and for communication.
The Future of Language Learning
It’s amazing how many language apps are still using old-fashioned modes of language learning that are very limited in their effectiveness. Modern technology has made it possible to put language drills on your smartphone, but they’re still just language drills.
At Immerse, we value what cutting-edge technology has to offer language learners, but
we know that technology only promotes actual learning when it’s applied the right way.
The Immerse team has applied it to creating virtual worlds where learners and instructors can interact naturally, fostering connections amongst people from around the globe, and keeping the learning journey fresh and authentic. And it works!
Let Immerse show you the new age of language learning.
