Free voice notes, or graded speaking homework?
A side-by-side look at speaking homework on WhatsApp voice notes versus hejhugo: grading, boundaries, and privacy.
A chat thread
A hejhugo sheet
WhatsApp voice notes are free and already on your phone, good for a quick one-off reply. hejhugo is built for ongoing speaking homework: you record a conversation once, students answer line by line in their own time, and you grade each reply with Correct, Close, or Not right, all in one place instead of a scrolling chat thread.
Can WhatsApp voice notes work for speaking homework?
Yes, for a quick one-off reply with a single student.
If you just want one student to answer one question before your next lesson, a voice note does the job. It gets harder to manage once you have more than a couple of students, want the same homework to go to everyone you teach, or want to find a reply again later instead of scrolling back through a chat.
What's the actual difference between hejhugo and sending voice notes?
WhatsApp sends one message at a time in a chat thread. hejhugo is built around one recorded conversation that every student answers line by line, with your grading kept alongside it.
On WhatsApp, you record a voice note and send it, then wait for one back in the same thread as everything else you talk about. On hejhugo, you record a short conversation once, in your own voice, and send it to every student you teach. Each student gets their own copy, answers one line at a time in their own time, and you hear every reply and mark it Correct, Close, or Not right, with a note if you like.
Do students need to download anything?
WhatsApp needs to be installed. hejhugo doesn't.
Your student needs WhatsApp on their phone and a contact or group to send the voice note to. With hejhugo, you send a link. They tap it, it opens in their phone's browser, and there's no app to install and no password to set up.
Does hejhugo cost students anything?
No. Students never pay, on every plan.
You pay for hejhugo. Your students don't pay anything, the same way they don't pay to receive a WhatsApp message from you.
Can I grade a reply in either one?
WhatsApp has no built-in way to grade a reply. hejhugo does.
On WhatsApp, you listen to the voice note and whatever you remember or note down elsewhere is the only record of how it went. On hejhugo, you listen to each reply and mark it Correct, Close, or Not right, with a note if you like, kept together with the sheet it belongs to.
Do you really want students in your personal chat?
When homework lives in a chat app, students can message you any time, including late at night and on weekends. hejhugo keeps homework in one place: students answer on their own link, and their replies arrive as graded submissions, not messages, so your personal number and your evenings stay yours.
Boundaries
When homework lives in a chat app, a voice-note homework thread invites a reply at any hour, including late at night and on weekends. With hejhugo, homework lives in one place, separate from your personal messages, and replies arrive as graded submissions you check on your own time.
Privacy
WhatsApp needs a phone number, so sending voice notes means sharing your personal number with every student, and students sharing theirs with you. hejhugo students open a link: no phone number, no app, no password. Your personal contact details stay personal.
Side by side
| WhatsApp voice notes | hejhugo | |
|---|---|---|
| What the tutor does | Records a voice note and sends it in a chat, one student or group at a time. | Records a conversation once, in their own voice, and sends it to every student they teach. |
| What the student does | Listens, then records and sends a voice note back in the same chat. | Opens their own link, listens to each line, and answers out loud, line by line, in their own time. |
| How you hear and grade replies | Listen in the chat. No built-in way to mark or track a reply. | Listen to each reply and mark it Correct, Close, or Not right, with a note if you like. |
| Where homework lives | Scattered across your chat history with that student. | Kept together as sheets, grouped by student. |
| Cost to student | Free, but WhatsApp has to be installed. | Always free. No app, no password, just a link. |
| Setup | None beyond having WhatsApp installed. | Record a sheet once (under 10 minutes), reuse it for every student. |
| Do students need your personal phone number? | Yes, to message you. | No. |
| Can students message you at any hour? | Yes, it's a chat thread. | No, replies arrive as homework submissions. |
When voice notes are fine, and when hejhugo fits better
Both have a place. It depends on how many students you teach and whether you want the homework kept somewhere.
Voice notes are fine when:
- You're sending something to a handful of students you already chat with
- It's a one-off question or a quick correction
- You and the student already chat on WhatsApp anyway
- You don't need to find or grade the reply again later
hejhugo fits better when:
- You teach more than a couple of students
- You want the same homework to reach everyone you teach, without re-recording it each time
- You want replies graded and kept somewhere, not lost in a chat thread
- Your student doesn't have, or doesn't want, WhatsApp
How much does hejhugo cost?
$15 per month or $99 per year, both with a 14-day free trial, or $249 once for lifetime access.
Unlimited students and sheets on every plan. Students never pay, on any plan.
For studentsRead the blogSpeaking practice between lessonsTurning trial lessons into regular students
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Questions
Do I need to stop using WhatsApp with my students?
No. Nothing about using hejhugo stops you from also messaging students on WhatsApp. hejhugo doesn't replace how you already talk to your students, it's specifically for the speaking homework part.
Is hejhugo trying to replace WhatsApp?
No. WhatsApp is a general chat app for talking to anyone about anything. hejhugo is built for one specific job: speaking homework between lessons, for every student you teach.
Do my students need to record and send a voice note like on WhatsApp?
They answer out loud right in hejhugo, in their phone's browser. There's no separate app to open, no recording-and-sending step, and no account to set up.
Does hejhugo cost my students anything?
No. Students never pay, on any plan. There's no app to download and no password, just a link you send them.
Does this work for any language?
Yes. You're recording your own voice, so it works for whatever language you teach.
How much does hejhugo cost?
Monthly and Annual plans both start with a 14-day free trial, or pay once with Lifetime. Unlimited students and sheets on every plan.
Is it okay to give students my WhatsApp number?
It's fine for one student or a quick reply, and plenty of tutors do exactly that. The trade-off is boundaries and privacy: your number is now in their phone and theirs in yours, and a chat thread invites messages at any hour. That trade-off grows as your student list grows, which is the gap hejhugo is built to close.
“Good pronunciation, try a longer answer next time.”