<![CDATA[English speaking proficiency is essential for vocational high school (SMK) graduates entering the workforce, yet speaking instruction often lacks authentic workplace contexts and scalable feedback mechanisms. Although AI-based language learning and vocational contextualized approaches are each documented in the literature, their synergistic integration remains empirically under-researched in Indonesian SMK pharmacy settings. This study examined whether AI-based learning embedded in vocational pharmacy tasks significantly improves the English speaking skills of Grade XI students at SMKN 1 Polewali. A quasi-experimental nonequivalent pretest–posttest control group design was employed with 31 Grade XI Pharmacy students (experimental n = 15; control n = 16). The experimental group received Gemini-assisted patient-counseling role-play instruction; the control group received conventional vocational-contextualized instruction without AI, across eight sessions over four weeks. Speaking performance was assessed using Heaton's (1988) rubric covering accuracy, fluency, and comprehensibility, and analyzed using paired-samples t-tests, an independent-samples t-test, and Cohen's d. The experimental group demonstrated significant pre–post improvement across all speaking aspects (p < .001) with large effect sizes (average d = 2.97), and significantly outperformed the control group at posttest (p = .006, d = 1.06). Comprehensibility showed the greatest gain. Theoretically, the study extends Swain's (1995) Output Hypothesis into AI-assisted ESP contexts by showing how chatbot-mediated role-play supports pushed output and immediate corrective feedback in resource-constrained SMK settings. The novelty lies in the synergistic integration of AI-based learning and vocational contextualized instruction—an approach not previously validated in Indonesian SMK pharmacy classrooms. AI-based learning in vocational contexts effectively improved speaking skills. Integrating accessible AI tools with workplace-relevant tasks offers a scalable model for English instruction in SMK programmes.]]>
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