Prof. Angel M. Y. LIN
The Education University of Hong Kong
This talk discusses the sustainability of human languages in the AI age, with the focus on metaverse communication. The metaverse is not just some far-off future; it is our present reality. The virtual realm is replete with exciting opportunities to reform a range of domains, from social media, to gaming, to education, and beyond. Through platforms like Roblox and Minecraft, educators can find innovate ways to teach our children. Meanwhile, the option to create your own avatar on a variety of social media sites can mitigate feelings of insecurity and anxiety while fostering a sense of community for many individuals. It goes without saying that our daily lives are becoming increasingly intertwined with digital realities. However, technological developments—including the advent of Web 3.0 and the release of generative AI systems to the public, such as ChatGPT—function as a double-edged sword: while the virtual space can be a sanctuary, overflowing with potential, it can also serve as a breeding ground for psychological, emotional, and ethical concerns. Such advantages and disadvantages affect the young and old. As we delve into an exploration of the metaverse, we uncover the importance of individual assessment, as well as the myriad of ways in which online communication can both bridge social divides and build barriers to exacerbate them. It is therefore vital that we understand how to embrace the benefits of the metaverse while remaining vigilant of its challenges. Conversing in the metaverse has never been so easy, yet also so complex.
Dr. Angel M. Y. Lin is Professor and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Plurilingual and Intercultural Education at Simon Fraser University, Canada. Currently she is also Chair Professor at the English Language Education Department, Education University of Hong Kong. Dr. Lin has been at the forefront of English language education and critical literacies since the late 1990s when she started working on classroom research projects in schools in Hong Kong. She has published widely on second language education, discourse analysis, trans/languaging (TL), trans-semiotizing (TS), Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), and critical media literacies. Over her career, she has published over 100 publications with over 12,000 citations and an impressive h-index of 56 and an i-10 index of 140. Dr. Lin’s leadership and mentoring has profoundly shaped the professional lives of doctoral students and emergent scholars both in Asia and Canada.
Prof. Lawrence Jun ZHANG
University of Auckland, New Zealand
Second/Foreign language (L2) students’ production in either oral or written language has been a focal area in recent years. So far, insufficient research has been conducted to explore this further. In order to clarify how task design factors would impact L2 learners’ written language production, in this presentation I review relevant theories and studies and report a study. By reporting the results of the study, I intend to draw attention to the importance of multidimensionally assessing the effects of task complexity on L2 students’ writing. I conclude the talk by underlining the importance of validating task complexity of the writing tasks for teaching and assessing writing and providing guidance for teachers and test designers on grading and sequencing tasks.
Lawrence Jun Zhang, PhD, is Professor of Applied Linguistics/TESOL and Associate Dean, University of Auckland, New Zealand. His major interests are in learner metacognition, the psychology of language learning and teaching, and teacher education, with particular reference to EFL reading/writing development and ESP/EAP. He has published extensively in leading international journals, including Applied Linguistics, MLJ, SSLA, TQ, LTR, System, among others. He is currently Co-Editor-in-Chief of System, serving on the editorial boards of seven international journals. In 2016 he was honoured with the recognition by the TESOL International Association (USA) with the award of “50@50”. In the Stanford University Rankings 2022, he was listed in the top 2% of Scientists in the World in the disciplinary areas of Linguistics/Applied Linguistics.
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1025-1746
Website: https://unidirectory.auckland.ac.nz/profile/lj-zhang
Prof. Hayo REINDERS
Anaheim University, USA
What stays the same when everything changes? Technological developments, in particular in AI, present us with challenging and urgent questions. However, these are often prompted by the technology, rather than by us. As a result, we may end up looking for answers to questions that are not relevant to us. In this presentation I want to bring the conversation back to where it belongs: with us teachers and our learners.
For this, I introduce the concept of Positive CALL (Reinders, forthcoming), or a values-based-approach to the use of technology that aims to enhance learner and teacher wellbeing and thriving. This is a humanistic perspective that places personal growth at the heart of our conversations about technology and that fosters educational sustainability.
At a practical level, I present ways in which teachers can (help their learners to) take a more constructive and agentic approach to technology. I give examples of ways in which technology has served the educational needs and goals of communities, not the other way around. I show everday strategies that can help us develop digital wellbeing and demonstrate how teachers can exert leadership to maintain control over their professional identity and aspirations. The aim of the presentation is to imagine new, human-centred opportunities for the role of technology in education.
Dr. Hayo Reinders (www.innovationinteaching.org) is TESOL Professor and Director of the doctoral programme at Anaheim University in the USA as well as Professor of Education in New Zealand. Hayo is Editor of the journal Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching (published by Taylor & Francis) and edits a book series on “New Language Learning and Teaching Environments”.
He founded the Institute for Teacher Leadership. His interests are in teacher empowerment, learner autonomy, and educational technology .
Prof. Jieun Kiaer
Young Bin Min-KF Professor; Oxford University
This talk discusses the sustainability of human languages in the AI age, with the focus on metaverse communication. The metaverse is not just some far-off future; it is our present reality. The virtual realm is replete with exciting opportunities to reform a range of domains, from social media, to gaming, to education, and beyond. Through platforms like Roblox and Minecraft, educators can find innovate ways to teach our children. Meanwhile, the option to create your own avatar on a variety of social media sites can mitigate feelings of insecurity and anxiety while fostering a sense of community for many individuals. It goes without saying that our daily lives are becoming increasingly intertwined with digital realities.
However, technological developments—including the advent of Web 3.0 and the release of generative AI systems to the public, such as ChatGPT—function as a double-edged sword: while the virtual space can be a sanctuary, overflowing with potential, it can also serve as a breeding ground for psychological, emotional, and ethical concerns. Such advantages and disadvantages affect the young and old. As we delve into an exploration of the metaverse, we uncover the importance of individual assessment, as well as the myriad of ways in which online communication can both bridge social divides and build barriers to exacerbate them. It is therefore vital that we understand how to embrace the benefits of the metaverse while remaining vigilant of its challenges. Conversing in the metaverse has never been so easy, yet also so complex.
Jieun Kiaer is the YBM-KF Professor of Korean Linguistics at the University of Oxford’s Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Faculty. Her research encompasses Asian linguistics, focusing on marginalized languages, and multimodal linguistics, including gesture studies. She also investigates the impact of AI on linguistic justice and diversity, with a specific emphasis on minoritized and under-resourced languages.
As a linguist, pragmatist, and specialist in Asian studies, Professor Kiaer has published extensively in theoretical and applied linguistics as well as translation studies. Her work transcends traditional Western, text-centric approaches to language, embracing non-European and multi-modal perspectives to offer a more nuanced understanding of human communication. Her recent publications include Emoji Speak (Bloomsbury, 2023 June) and The Future of Syntax (Bloomsbury, 2023). Conversing in the Metaverse (Bloomsbury, forthcoming)
Find out more about her work here:
Dr. Nur Arifah Drajati
TEFLIN and Universitas Sebelas Maret
Digital Storytelling (DST) is a unique and powerful way of conveying knowledge and experiences in almost all fields. The use of DST as knowledge transfer media is a perfect choice, especially in classrooms where knowledge and experiences are shared. Indonesian English as Foreign Language (EFL) teachers have little experience in learning DST in PD program and adopting in classrooms.
This DST PD program gives positive impacts and challenges for teachers from designing lesson and implementing into the classrooms. Teachers shape their positive belief toward Digital Storytelling as the classroom instructional design. They believe that DST could improve all students ‘English skills simultaneously. DST PD programs might offer opportunities foster teachers’ reflective practice through which teachers can learn and enhance their technological literacy (Stenhouse & Schafer, 2019).
Nur Arifah Drajati is assistant professor of the English Language Education Department of UniversitasSebelas Maret (UNS). She contributed to several reputable journals. Her research interests lie in technology in language learning, TPACK, Multimodal, and Informal Digital Learning of English.