Google NotebookLM: Creating Engaging Language Lessons

Suggested Uses for Language Teaching and Learning

NotebookLM can be used in different aspects of language education. Below you can find several examples.

• Content creation: Teachers can upload news articles, blog posts, video links, and audio and ask the tool to synthesize the information or outlines for a presentation. This can be used at the beginning of the class, or in a flipped classroom, for students to learn quickly about the topic and listen to the expressions of diverse accents. 
• Summaries: Teachers can upload articles and video links about festivities and how they are celebrated in different countries, for example. Ask the tool to summarize the information based on the cultural significance and ways it is celebrated today. Versions with differing proficiency levels can be easily created.
• Collaborative learning: Students can share notebooks and collaborate, for example, on projects exploring different aspects of the target language cultures by investigating historic contexts and contemporary media, and compiling the findings in the notebook. Then, the information can be synthesized and presented to the class. 
• Podcast: Teachers can upload text, audio, or video links based on a particular topic or theme and ask the tool to create a podcast for them. For example, teachers could use travel blog websites, video links, and even audio to create an engaging podcast in the target language by clicking on the “Notebook Guide” feature, then “Customize” (here is where you tell the tool that it needs to generate the podcast in a specific language), and finally, “Generate” (located in the Deep Dive Conversation box). 
• Research: Teachers can upload technology news websites in the target language, for example, websites and tech forums in Spanish and articles that talk about Spanish language evolution. Ask NotebookLM to generate a list of new tech vocabulary in Spanish, regional variations, and new Spanish terms for digital concepts (e.g., smartphone, móvil, celular). 
• Study guide: Teachers and students can make use of this feature by uploading relevant materials like grammar points, vocabulary lists, classroom notes, and any supplementary articles related to the class. Then, click the “Notebook Guide” button followed by the “Study Guide” feature. This will create a guide with key terms and potential exam questions. Students can use the “Chat” interface to ask the tool specific questions depending on their learning needs. 
• Discussions: Teachers can upload text or video links on current events or cultural topics and ask NotebookLM to create engaging discussion questions to promote critical thinking and allow students to express themselves in the target language or their views of the language they are learning.