Zahadin Omar

Dear AILA Members, International Committee, and Executive Board,

More than ever, verbal and visual language have been a key to the world and social life in the past few months. While bodily locked down, we still have been able to meet one anothers’ minds and hearts by using media and, most of all, our languages.

AILA has grown this year, against all odds. Before the pandemic, we set up the AILA ASEAN regional network, and we very recently launched the AILA Ibero-American regional network. This broadens our dialogue on languages and research cultures.

In our worldwide community of language researchers and practitioners, we now engage in 28 AILA Research Networks that address key issues of language learning and language use. And we launched our AILA Research Debate on hot topics in Applied Linguistics.

By developing the AILA Endorsement Principles, we laid strong grounds for systematically engaging in global, regional, and local debates about social problems in which language matters. This fosters our strategic collaboration with UNESCO and, through AILA Europe, with the European Council.

Reaching out requires strong collaboration and effective communication. So, we launched the AILA App and upgraded the AILA Review. This helps us stay in touch, listen to the unexpected, engage in academic and professional discourse, and spread the words that matter.

We’ve also carried out the hands-on measures suggested by the AILA International Board in 2019. These include:

• showing a world map of forthcoming Applied Linguistics events on the AILA website
• building AILA communities on Twitter
• creating an AILA promo video that can be shown at National Affiliates’ congresses
• engaging in an AILA roadshow, for live Q&A with National Affiliates’ members
• writing success stories of AILA (Tandem) collaboration
• planning spaces on the AILA App for National Affiliates and Research Networks.

In the next twelve months, we will develop our open and inclusive AILA World Congress format, with hybrid architecture for on-site and remote participation. It will be launched at the AILA 2021 World Congress in Groningen.

Thank you for being part of the AILA family. Thank you for making Applied Linguistics matter.

Daniel Perrin, President, International Association of Applied Linguistics
July 2020

< List of ReNs

Fully Inclusive Practitioner Research  

Convenors:

The rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has caught the educational world unprepared. With the sudden move to remote instruction for educators and students across the globe, conducting inclusive practitioner research has become all the more important for language teachers and learners to process their new—sometimes disorienting—experiences surrounding teaching and learning remotely. Educators have been engaging world-wide in critical discussion of the pandemic, exploring such questions as: What does online learning (and online communication) look like? How do we create equitable learning environments for all? How have female researchers, in particular, been impacted?

Many aspects of practitioner research have been affected by COVID-19. Previously arranged face-to-face data collection is now taking place through platforms such as WhatsApp, WeChat, Teams, Skype, and Zoom. Teacher education programmes are additionally using remote data collection to support teacher candidates developing knowledge about online research practices. Many practitioner research communities have continued to meet over Zoom to discuss puzzles and questions about online learning. In our renewed Fully Inclusive Practitioner Research (FIPR) Research Network, we welcome members to consider how their own practitioner research has been affected (negatively or positively) by the current global pandemic.

The original aim of this Research Network was to bring together researchers, practitioner researchers, practitioners, and scholars around the world who are involved in forms of fully inclusive practitioner research in order to theorise praxis, challenge established orders, and build new opportunities for collaboration and research in applied linguistics, language education, and beyond. Representing a host of democratically-principled classroom inquiry practices, FIPR sees teachers and learners as working together as ‘co-practitioners’ to develop deeper understandings about the teaching-learning process. Because much practitioner research is conducted by teachers, teacher educators, and learners, in classrooms around the world—rather than by academics, fewer platforms exist for people to meet, or for knowledge exchange to happen between geographically disparate groups. A network can help with establishing a platform for creative dissemination of ideas and theory-building across cultures. It can also provide expertise and support for those who are new to inclusive practitioner research. In facilitating communications between our various groups over the past four years, engaged in multidisciplinary research spanning countries, continents, and cultures, we have been able to explore notions and practices of inclusive practitioner research in different educational contexts, making this an interdisciplinary as well as an intercultural enterprise.

We are particularly interested in working collaboratively to investigate the connections between different frameworks, such as Exploratory Practice, Lesson Study, Reflective Practice, and various iterations of Action Research (e.g., collaborative, exploratory, participatory). In particular, Exploratory Practice, which emphasises puzzling, understanding, and quality of life, and, crucially, positions learners and teachers as co-researchers, is explicitly included as a main plank of the network. This range of reflective practices encourages alternative ways of thinking about learners, teachers, and professional development. As a network, we wish to explore the opportunities for collaboration between learners, teachers, and researchers, challenging traditionally accepted roles and playfully questioning established identities. Our questions include:

• What are the unique contributions that different FIPR models (e.g., Action Research, Exploratory Practice, Reflective Practice, etc.) bring to our developing understanding of inclusive practitioner research?
• What is the impact of inclusive practitioner research in educational cultures locally, nationally, and internationally?
• What are the possible contexts in which FIPR can be conducted?
• Who does research? Who has the power, and who is disempowered in research? Whose voices count in building theory and theorising pedagogy? Why?
• What does this say about current trends in applied linguistics, language education, and society more generally?

We take a critical perspective, highlighting the challenges of different contextual constraints, probing assumptions of voice, agency, and ownership when conducting inclusive practitioner research, and foregrounding issues of local and global knowledge in disseminating research via publishing or other means.

Our continued goals for the ReN include:

• To identify the epistemological challenges that practitioner researchers face, as well as the innovations they offer, in applied linguistics
• To track the impact that inclusive practitioner research is having in and across applied linguistics and educational cultures
• To develop the potential for multidisciplinary, cross-cultural, and inclusive practitioner research
• To continue theory development of inclusive practitioner research, especially but not exclusively, Exploratory Practice
• To identify research projects already under way in the various member countries and to strengthen international links between groups working in similar topic areas
• To seek out new opportunities for collaborative, relevant, and inclusive practitioner research in applied linguistics and language education
• To share methodologies and ideas, and promote creative ways of disseminating inclusive practitioner research that supports teachers, teacher educators, and learners
• To promote the good research and scholarship that has already been done and to develop new areas of interest

Our new aims are:

• To highlight and enhance further the profile of practitioner research
• To generate international reflection on how COVID-19 has impacted (positively or negatively) practitioner researcher work with students and peers
• To verify whether existing practitioner researcher groups have found ways of sustaining their activities as a consequence of the pandemic and to identify new online practitioner researcher groups that have been created as a consequence of the pandemic
• To involve practitioner researchers in the assessment of their own academic research production, in terms of publications and/or participation in national and international workshops and conferences to share their academic experiences with their colleagues
• To investigate internationally what policies have been/can be negotiated with private or governmental institutions to offer future financial support to attend conferences
• To intensify FIPR to work on equity issues (refugees, poverty, adoption, health and wellbeing, etc.) that have become more urgent during pandemic times around the globe.

We intend to achieve these aims by connecting researchers, teachers, learners, and teacher educators from different countries via face-to-face or Zoom meetings and on-line discussions and webinars. In this way, we intend to engage in critical explorations of ways in which learners, teachers, teacher educators and researchers are positioned, and to launch investigations into cultures (small and large) of education.

The OASIS database (https://oasis-database.org) aims to make research in language studies more accessible to practitioners, such as teachers and curriculum developers. We currently have over 1350 one-page summaries written in non-technical language freely available on the website. We add new summaries every week, including summaries of all new research articles appearing in Language Learning, TESOL Quarterly, The Modern Language Journal, and Studies in Second Language Acquisition.

To make it even easier to keep up with the latest research, we are replacing our monthly newsletter with an automated weekly email containing links to new summaries. We provide two options:

1) Sign up to all summaries. Every week you will receive an email with links to all new summaries. We recommend this option if you have wide-ranging interests or are interested in all new language-related research

OR

2) Subscribe to keywords that match your interests. Every week you will receive an email with links to all new summaries that match your selected keywords.

Sign up here:

https://subscriptions.oasis-database.org/

IMPORTANT: The automated email service will replace the monthly digest, so please make sure to sign up and stay up to date with all the wonderful research that is out there

October 2–4, 2020

Virtual Conference (Organized by: The Department of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics of the School of English, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)

http://www.new.enl.auth.gr/istal24/

The Department of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics of the School of English, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki is pleased to announce the virtual 24^th International Symposium on Theoretical and Applied Linguistics to be held on 2–4 October 2020. We are delighted to welcome as invited speakers the following scholars:

• Ghada Khattab
• Enric Llurda
• David Marsh
• Kiki Nikiforidou
• Ianthi Maria Tsimpli

For registration and more information visit http://www.new.enl.auth.gr/istal24/

For enquiries, please contact

Organizing Committee

Areti-Maria Sougari

Angeliki Athanasiadou

Katerina Nikolaidis

Valandis Bardzokas

Maria Dimitrakopoulou

Maria Moumtzi

What is the difference between an AILA Congress Lab and an AILA World Congress?

The AILA Congress Lab explores novel hybrid conference formats, which influences how we deal with content, traditions, and change in the field. The experiences and learnings from AILA Congress Labs will help develop a new format for the AILA World Congress to be more inclusive, more inspiring, and more to the point in the future.

What does the term Lab refer to?

Exploring, evaluating and further developing cutting-edge hybrid conference formats. AFLA in Europe; 2024 MAAL in Asia; learnings can be tested, refined and adapted to another world region. This lab period is meant to result in a clear and empirically grounded new spirit of AILA World Congresses.

How many days would an AILA Congress Lab last?

Between 3-5 days in general. This includes offering cutting-edge hybrid conference design that allows for virtual participation worldwide and resonates in our colleagues’ minds still months after the time slot of the core conference activity.

“TAAL being a member of AILA provides great opportunities for Thai applied linguistics researchers to become active participants in the international research community – for example with the help of AILA Research Networks”, says Sonthida Keyuravong, President, Thailand Association for Applied Linguistics (TAAL).

TAAL hopes to benefit from the experiences of other AILA affiliates in raising the profile of applied linguistics in Thailand. In a next step, TAAL will co-host the 4th Doing Research in Applied Linguistics (DRAL) Conference, which focuses on the interplay of research methodology and the investigation of language use. The conference will be held at King Mongkut‘s University of Technology Thonburi.

In organizing the DRAL conference, TAAL collaborateswith the Malaysian Association of Applied Linguistics (MAAL) and the Singapore Association for Applied Linguistics (SAAL). MAAL, SAAL, and TAAL are the founding members of the regional AILA network in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region.

September 8–10, 2021

https://maal.org.my/category/events/

The 2nd International Conference of the Malaysian Association of Applied Linguistics MAAL focuses on Applied Linguistics research and practices in a world of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.

The UNICollaboration organisation is organising an international research conference on the theme of “Virtual Exchange in a Changing World: Innovation and Inclusion”. Our 2026 theme acknowledges the transformative power of digital connectivity and collaborative learning in times of global complexity.

The conference will take place on June 4-5, 2026 at the Cyprus University of Technology in Limassol, Cyprus and welcomes presentations, workshops, panel discussions and posters that include both research studies and practical reports.

The deadline for submission is 15 November 2025. Details can be found in the Call for Papers HERE and the link to submit abstracts can be found on the conference website HERE.

If you have specific questions about conference logistics or travel issues, you can contact the organizers at their email address: ; or directly to ; 

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by Mark Wyatt and Farahnaz Faez

We have been invited to submit a book proposal for an edited volume on language learners’ and teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs by a major publisher.

Self-efficacy beliefs, i.e. can-do beliefs in one’s abilities to fulfil specific valued tasks in particular domains and contexts, have been the subject of much research in the last 20 years, in both language learning and language teaching. This research interest reflects the importance of these beliefs in shaping behavior and influencing outcomes.

Much of the research to date has appeared in journals, with treatment in book form rare. We feel it is time for an edited volume that both consolidates recent developments in the field, drawing on work from different national contexts, and points towards the future. We are particularly interested in how transformative change can be effected in the language self-efficacy (LSE) beliefs of learners and teachers.

The proposed edited volume focuses on areas such as the following:

• Methodological considerations in researching LSE beliefs (using quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods designs)
• LSE beliefs and related psychological constructs (e.g. self-esteem, self-concept, self-determination)
• LSE beliefs in language learning (e.g. development in language learning strategies, skills relating to reading, writing, listening and speaking, knowledge areas such as grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary)
• LSE beliefs and language proficiency (and issues such as the legitimization of world Englishes, the valuing of bilingualism, social justice for marginalized groups, and the focus in teacher preparation courses on the language needed for teaching rather than global linguistic competence)
• LSE beliefs and language teaching (in pre- and in-service contexts, considering teachers’ context-specific concerns and challenges, sometimes in difficult circumstances, and educational innovation)
• LSE beliefs, reflective practice, knowledge growth, cognitive change and mentoring
• LSE beliefs and practitioner research (e.g. action research, exploratory practice)
• LSE beliefs in adapting to a rapidly changing world (e.g. in using technology)

If interested in contributing a chapter to the book, we would like to invite you to submit an abstract of 300-500 words, together with a short list of references. You would be welcome to focus on any of the above themes. Chapters may include primary data, but this is not a requirement. Reflective accounts would be welcome, as would syntheses of the literature in a particular area or context. We would like the volume to be forward-looking, so implications for research and pedagogy should be emphasized.

Please contact or if you have any questions. Please submit your 300-500 word abstract to us by email. The deadline is 10 January 2022. Thank you.

in featured stories / Research Sharepoint

Special Theme: The Pragmatics of Inclusion

June 27–July 2, 2021

ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur, Switzerland

https://pragmatics.international/page/Winterthur2021

The 17th International Pragmatics Conference will be held in Winterthur, Switzerland, from 27 June to 2 July 2021.

The program consists of four categories of events:

Panel contributions: thematic sessions organized around accepted panel proposals to which contributions can be submitted spontaneously as well as on invitation
The accepted panels cover the whole spectrum of pragmatics: From Language Socialization in Parent-Child Interaction to the comprehensibility of language for specific purposes for a broader public or the analysis of policies and practices of communication between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples of Canada.
Download the full list of panels.

Lectures: individually submitted papers for oral presentation, grouped thematically after evaluation and acceptance

Posters: individually submitted papers to be displayed as posters during the entire conference week, with a discussion period exclusively devoted to posters on Thursday afternoon

Plenary lectures: a total of six plenary lectures will be presented. Plenary sessions are planned for Sunday afternoon, Wednesday morning, and Friday afternoon.
Already confirmed:

• David Beaver, University of Texas, Austin, USA (website)
• Amy Kyratzis, University of California at Santa Barbara, USA (website) - Susan Ervin-Tripp Lecture
• Carmen Lee, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong (website)
• Miriam Locher, University of Basel, Switzerland (website)
• Maria Sifianou, University of Athens, Greece (website)
• Deborah Tannen, Georgetown University, USA (website) - recipient of IPrA's John J Gumperz Lifetime Achievement Award 2021

In addition, a plenary Roundtable is being planned on the history and development of pragmatics, based on an extensive review of journal and conference contents.

Note that IPrA membership is required for submitting an abstract (with all deadlines in 2020) as well as for presenting during the conference (in 2021), and that membership always runs from 1 January to 31 December, no matter at what time in the year it is applied for.

Deadlines:
Volume 21 No. 2: November 30, 2018
Volume 22 No. 1: March 15, 2019

The Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal (CALJ) invites all researchers and teachers from the local and international audience to present original, unpublished articles that are not in the process of being published in another journal. The CALJ is published twice a year by the College of Sciences and Education, Master Program in Applied Linguistics of the Universidad de Caldas Francisco José de Caldas. This journal is indexed in Education Research Abstracts (ERA), Modern Language Association Bibliography (MLA), Latindex, SciELO, Redalyc, Publindex (Category B), Ulrich's Periodicals, DOAJ, e-Revistas and in EBSCO Publishing.

Visit and read the new Issue (Volume 20 No.2) HERE!

Disruptions allow and provide opportunities for new beginnings, fundamental reconsiderations, and the conceptualization of alternative directional approaches to education and training. They form a constitutive part of growing up, socialization, and education. The basic dialectical tone and the colorful metaphors used in the context of disruptions, upheavals, breakthroughs, collapses, or new departures point, not least, to the fundamental anthropological issue of a fragile existence. Not only does the notion of the human fragment testifies to this, but so does the phenomenon of the breakthrough as an elementary gain of knowledge along the fault lines of experience. Both in individual life courses and in the context of organizational or societal developmental processes, rifts mark disruptive changes. The dynamics of such social and cultural transformations, technological innovations, political upheavals, or increasing diversifications of educational and professional careers require pedagogical actors to deal with such breaks, discontinuities, and transitions. With the topic of this congress, we aim not only to identify problems but also focus on necessary moments of transition which hold potential for innovation and the positive shaping of the future.

The GERA Congress 2026 will take place in Munich from March 22nd – March 25th 2026.

https://dgfe2026.fak11.lmu.de/en/sample-page-english/ 

Liepaja University in cooperation with:

Latvian Language and Literature Teachers’ Association

The Latvian Association of Teachers of English

Speech Therapists’ Association of Latvia

Latvian Association of Applied Linguistics

Goethe-Institut Riga

and Liepaja Department of Education

welcome you to participate in the 20th International Scientific Conference

LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: PROBLEMS AND PERSPECTIVE

May 19, 2023

In the language acquisition conference, the following themes will be discussed

• Linguistic research on the content of language teaching and its acquisition
• Linguistic didactics research on language learning in higher education and non-formal education
• Pedagogical and psychological research on language learning for children, young people and adults
• Development of the child's speech and language in preschool and family
• Offer of mother tongue and foreign language acquisition in Latvian schools
• Special educational needs in language learning
• The impact of culture, subculture and value orientation on language learning
• Acquisition of the Latvian language as a foreign language in Latvia and abroad
• The language environment in Latvia and the importance of the population's linguistic attitude in language learning
• Use of IT for modern language learning solutions
• Status of communicative and linguistic competence in the labor market
• Speech and language development disorders, their correction and prevention
• Academic writing in school and higher education

Full info: https://vapplapp.liepu.lv/en

July 2–6, 2018

Cape Town, South Africa

Read More›

Taking Risks in Applied Linguistics

September 6-8, 2018

York St John University, England, UK

Read More›

Language practices, narratives, identities, ideologies and politics of (im)mobility in migratory contexts

September 27-28, 2018

Sestri Levante, Genoa, Italy

Read More›

March 9–12, 2019

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Read More›

AILA national affiliates embody traditions and represent cultures of doing, promoting, and supporting research and teaching, for example by the way they organize conferences, award academic leadership, and interact with their individual members. Experiencing these traditions and cultures across affiliates’ biotopes and boundaries can challenge routines, inspire us to think out of the box and foster mutual learning.

in AILA Long-term Activities / featured stories / Tandem Initiative

AILA is in contact with several potential new affiliates, for example, to keep the momentum of the AILA 2017 World Congress going and to strengthen Applied Linguistics in Latin America. The procedure of becoming an AILA National Affiliate has been simplified. A new, checklist style application form provides prospective parties with an overview of all the requirements for a successful application.

in AILA Long-term Activities / featured stories / Identity

At the 2018 annual meeting on June 3 and 4, AILA will launch the new website. The joint development process of the website started on February 1. Members of the AILA Board and AILA International Committee are welcome to comment on the website in progress, to make suggestions for additional features, and to evaluate the site’s usability. Please contact:

in featured stories / Visibility

Word of the Year initiatives have raised increasing attention around the globe. For Applied Linguists, the phenomenon is of twofold interest: First, empirically grounded selection processes of socially predominant words require sophisticated analytical tools from discourse and corpus analysis. Second, media coverage of every Word of the Year is an opportunity to raise both language awareness and the visibility of Applied Linguistics in society at large. These are two good reasons for a new AILA workgroup to explore ideas of collaborating with Word of the Year initiatives. To join the workgroup please contact: Word of the Year

in AILA Long-term Activities / featured stories / Research

Hot topics in research, such as literacy, tend to be addressed by fast-growing networks of globally connected researchers. Network participants bring in enthusiasm and commitment to their specific topic, which they address from various angles of traditional and new disciplines. Similar to AILA, these networks address linguistically and socially relevant issues, but often without the institutional stability and constant reach of AILA. Collaborating on global or regional levels with such networks, such as the European Literacy Network, benefits all parties involved. To join the workgroup please contact: Interweaving

in AILA Long-term Activities / featured stories / Research

Officially endorsing empirically grounded and theoretically sound polices on language use can foster the language awareness of decision-makers. By doing so, it may impact decisions, for example, in education management, courtrooms, and politics, for the sustainable benefit of society at large. In order to strengthen the connection between linguistic knowledge and action, AILA has established a workgroup that scouts policies already (or not yet) endorsed by our national affiliates and makes suggestions for global endorsements to the AILA Executive Board and International Committee.

in Action / AILA Long-term Activities / featured stories

Globally relevant organizations such as UNESCO could benefit from systematic collaboration with AILA – and vice versa. This is all the more the case since the strategic goals of AILA and such organizations can considerably overlap, as the example of the UNESCO strategic goals shows. An AILA workgroup takes action in addressing such strategic overlap and evaluating ways of inter-institutional collaboration.

in Action / AILA Long-term Activities / featured stories / UNESCO

In 2010, Multilingual Matters (MM) contributed 90,000 GBP to the AILA solidarity fund. As part of this donation, it was agreed that AILA would set up a Library Award, and special MM solidarity awards at the triennial AILA congresses. In an effort to increase communication and transparency among its members and after discussions with the EB/IC, AILA decided to embark on the development of a database and communication tool through an online platform and a dedicated AILA app which will be made available for free to all members of the AILA Affiliates. First versions of the tool will be evaluated and presented at the AILA EB/IC meeting 2018.

in featured stories / Identity

In January 2018, the AILA Research Networks committee unanimously approved 27 applications for acceptance. Research Networks (ReN) convenors have been invited to share information regarding their ReN with the larger Applied Linguistics community via the next AILA Matters section of the International Journal of Applied Linguistics, and via the AILA website, where the list of ReNs is published.

in featured stories / Research

AILA Review is the official scholarly journal of AILA. Its first issue appeared in 1984, and from 1989, all volumes are guest-edited and thematically oriented. They include original unpublished contributions dealing with topics relevant to the scope of Applied Linguistics.

Read More› in featured stories / Research

European Journal of Applied Linguistics
Editor-in-Chief: Bührig, Kristin / Stephanie Risse / ten Thije, Jan D.

The European Journal of Applied Linguistics (EuJAL) focuses on the particular concerns of applied linguistics in European contexts, both by addressing problems that are typically relevant for the linguistic situation in Europe, from those on the level of the EU as a pan-national body down to the level of the individual, and by examining topics broached by or discussed in European applied linguistics in particular. In addition to resulting from an epistemological stance, EuJAL is a logical outcome of the regionalization policy of the Association Internationale de Linguistique Appliquée (AILA), supporting the societies' commitment to regionalization by focusing on the European language space and by giving applied linguists from this regional context an adequate forum. EuJAL is part of the joint activities of the European AILA affiliates.

in EUROPE / featured stories / Research

< List of ReNs

Literature in Language Learning and Teaching (LiLLT)

Convenors:

1. Scope

Over the period of the existence of the AILA LiLLT ReN, we have had ongoing discussions about our scope and mission.

In the next three years, our mission is to:

• Continue to raise the profile of research into the use of literature in language classrooms within applied linguistics
• Encourage dialogue and cooperation between researchers working on the learning of different languages
• Encourage dialogue and cooperation between researchers working in this area from multiple perspectives (e.g. students’ learning processes and teachers’ professional knowledge, beliefs and motivation)

2. Evidence of past activities

Over the period of its existence, the ReN has organised a joint presentation at a language teaching conference, a three-day conference of its own, an online symposium, and the ReN symposium at the AILA Congress in August 2021.

2.1 AILA LiLLT ReN Symposium at the 52nd IATEFL Conference, Brighton, UK, 8-12 April 2018

This was a symposium entitled “Researching Literature in the Language Classroom – Patterns and Possibilities”, in which five presenters from the LiLLT (Christian Ludwig, Friederike Klippel, Sandie Mourão, Amos Paran and Petra Kirchhoff) discussed different methodological issues in our area. There were ca. 30 people in attendance, both ReN members and interested non-members. (See Appendix A for evidence.)

2.2 Inaugural LiLLT Conference, University of Erfurt, Germany, 29-31 August 2019.

This was a three-day conference with three plenary speakers (from China, Germany, and Sweden) and 35 presenters, presenting a variety of research approaches. There were ca. 40 attendees. (See Appendix B for a detailed programme of the event.)

2.3 LiLLT Online Symposium, Taking Literature Online in Times of Crisis, 23 October, 2020

This was an online symposium dealing with the ways in which literature in language learning and teaching had adapted to online environments as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. It dealt with theoretical and empirical issues and was deemed extremely successful by the participants. The papers from the online event are being edited as a book, to be published by Bloomsbury in 2022. (See below).

2.4 LiLLT ReN Symposium at the AILA World Congress 2021

This was a whole day symposium, entitled Broadening Perspectives: Theorising, Researching and Practicing Literature in Language Teaching. The number of presentations allowed us to have a full day symposium, with two keynote talks (by three presenters) and 9 additional presentations by 12 speakers. (See Appendix D). This was well attended by many AILA attendees who are not part of the ReN.

3.  Publications

An edited collection, Taking Literature and Language Learning Online, bringing together research from the 2020 Online Symposium is currently in preparation. The deadline for the submission of the manuscript is December 1^st 2021 and the book will be published with Bloomsbury in 2022.

Publications currently listed on the ReN website (2018-2021 only):

2021

Tsang, A. and Paran, A. 2021. Learners’ views of literature in EFL education from curricular and assessment perspectives. The Curriculum Journal https://bera-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/curj.102

Paran, A., Spöttl, C., Ratheiser, U., and Eberharter, K. 2021. Measuring literary competences in SLA. In: P. Winke & T. Brunfaut (eds.) The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Language Testing. 326-337. New York: Routledge.

2020

Tsang, A., Paran, A., and Lau, W. W. F. 2020. The language and non-language benefits of literature in foreign language education: An exploratory study of learners’ views. Language Teaching Research Online first.https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168820972345

Bloemert, J., Paran, A., and Jansen, E. 2020. Connecting students and researchers: the secondary school student’s voice in foreign language education. Cambridge Journal of Education. 50 (4), 429-449. Available as Open Access on https://doi.org/10.1080/0305764X.2020.1720603

2019

Kirchhoff, P. (2019). Your story in 280 characters max. – Twitter fiction für das kreative Schreiben nutzen. In: Der Fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 53 (160), 40–45.

Calafato, R. and Paran, A. 2019. Age as a factor in Russian EFL teacher attitudes towards literature in language education. Teaching and Teacher Education 79, 28-37. Free download: https://authors.elsevier.com/c/1YDWe,GtqvjvX

Diamantidaki, F. (ed.) (2018). Teaching Literature in Modern Foreign Languages. New York: Bloomsbury.

Knaap, E. van der. 2019. Literatuur en film in het vreemdetalenonderwijs. Bussum: Coutinho [in press].

2018

Bland, J. (ed.). (2018). Using Literature in English Language Education Challenging Reading for 8-18 Year Olds. London: Bloomsbury Academic.

Bland, J. (2018). Learning through literature. In Garton, Sue, Fiona Copland (eds), Routledge Handbook of Teaching English to Young Learners. Oxford: Routledge. 269-287.

Diamantidaki, F. (2018). Literature in Chinese language teaching and learning supported by the use of the Internet and digital resources. In Diamantidaki, F., L. Pan and K. Carruthers (eds.). Mandarin Chinese Teacher Education: Issues and Solutions. London: UCL IOE Press.

Knaap, E. van der. 2018. Zur Bedeutung der Lexik für das literarische Lesen. Didaktische Erkenntnisse einer Textdeckungsuntersuchung. Informationen Deutsch als Fremdsprache (Info DaF) 45, 4, 2018, 444-463.

Website

We have promoted our events and research via our ReN website: https://lilltresearch.net/

4. Proposed ReN activities (2021-2024)

Publications

• An edited collection, Taking Literature and Language Learning Online, bringing together research from the 2020 Online Symposium is currently in preparation and will be published with Bloomsbury in 2022.
• We have been approached by Mouton De Gruyter regarding possible publication of papers from the AILA Congress symposium. We are discussing this possibility and aim to reach a decision about whether to work on this publication or not once we have submitted the manuscript of Taking Literature and Language Learning Online.

Website

We will continue to maintain the ReN website to promote research and events as well as connect interested parties: https://lilltresearch.net/

Continuation of ongoing programme of LiLLT Conferences

• 2022 2^nd LiLLT Conference (organised by Ewout van der Knaap, University of Utrecht)
• 2023 ReN Symposium at the AILA World Congress
• 2024 3^rd LiLLT Online Symposium

2nd LiLLT ReN Symposium on upcoming AILA World Congress

We hereby confirm our commitment in organising a symposium at the next AILA World Congress.

Dear Fellow Applied Linguists,
I hope this announcement finds Everyone in good health and spirits. I would like to invite you to take part in research investigating how linguistics instructors and students have been coping with the transition to 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. In particular, we hope to understand what circumstances, behaviours, attitudes and psychological traits have helped you deal with the shift, and what was difficult. You will likely find it easy to relate to many questions. The survey is anonymous and will solely serve scientific purposes. It should take around 25-40 minutes to complete; around 85% of the questions are of the quick multiple-choice type.

There are different versions of the questionnaire:

Thank you very much in advance for taking part! 🙏🏻  If you know instructors, teachers, colleagues, friends, or students who have been teaching or learning online this (past) semester and might want to participate, please feel free to share this announcement.

Stay safe and healthy!

Michał B. Paradowski Institute of Applied Linguistics,

University of Warsaw

I am aware of survey fatigue among the community, but hope our questionnaire is a bit different from others out there. Here are some respondents' comments: "Thank you for sharing this survey! I enjoyed completing it, and thought it was one of the more comprehensive and compassionate surveys I’ve done during this time." "Just completed this survey and I too would HIGHLY recommend that you spend some time completing it. It’s LONG as surveys go, so grab yourself a good cup of tea/coffee and some nibbles and find yourself a quiet space, it’s going take over half an hour, but I can safely say I have never felt that a survey could be life affirming but this is! It actually made me feel better. It’s like your own personal therapist at these difficult times. Thank you! Well done." "I was able to relate all the questions to my experiences. I appreciated that the survey seemed to focus on the educator as a whole person rather than just a 'provider of lessons and materials'."

"This was kind of cathartic for me."

The TESL Canada Journal is an open-access peer-reviewed journal publishing in the areas of teaching and learning of official languages (English and French), minority, heritage or Aboriginal languages, and research relevant to language teacher education and development. The journal aims to represent the scholarly and professional interests of teachers and researchers in the field of English as a Second Language (ESL).

Submit your work and contribute to the knowledge base of language teachers and researchers across Canada and around the world.

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: 2023 Special Issue

We are currently seeking proposals from prospective guest editors for our 2023 Special Issue. Proposals are due June 30, 2022.

The TESL Canada Journal publishes one or two Special Issues per year, generally in the late autumn. Special Issue topics are selected by the Journal Advisory Committee.

Guest editors are responsible for the review process and the selection of content. Special Issues are published online only, on the TESL Canada Journal open access website.

You can view the full Call for Proposals, including deadlines and submission criteria, here.

We look forward to receiving your submissions. Please do not hesitate to contact our editors should you have further questions.

Sincerely,

Farahnaz Faez, editor ()
Antonella Valeo, editor ()

International Conference on Language and Places: Multilingual Practices and Identity

March 12-14, 2024

Hosted by Wingate Campus, Netanya, Israel

Contact Person: Prof. Malka Muchnik ()

This conference aims at bringing together researchers interested in multilingualism, language and identity, education, language landscape, language attitudes and change over generations. We live in a dynamic global reality where people migrate from place to place, and the number of people living in a country different from where they were born constantly increases. Some migrate out of choice: work, studies, and family, and many others out of necessity: political persecution, disasters, terrorism, or human rights violations. The increase in the number of immigrants is accompanied by research on social, economic, and linguistic characteristics that affect their integration patterns in host societies. Language repertoires should not be associated with national borders and thus with national languages, but cover various diatopic varieties, as well as minority languages, including those linked to migration experiences. The conference envisions a critical space for stimulating dialogue among international scholars.

Find out more here: https://languageandidentity2024.wordpress.com/

Downlaod Updated Conference Program here (pdf).

The Spanish Association of Applied Linguistics (AESLA) and the Organizing Committee of this edition are pleased to invite you to the 43rd International Conference of the Spanish Association of Applied Linguistics, organized by the Department of Spanish Language at the University of Granada. The conference will be held in Granada from April 15 to 17, 2026, at the School of Civil, Canal, and Port Engineering.

With the topic: ‘Language, variation and identity: linguistic dynamics for representing identity’, we want the conference to become a space for dialogue where we can reflect on how language reflects and shapes social reality and how speakers use linguistic resources to represent their identity.

The AESLA 2026 Organising Committee encourages you to participate in the conference by submitting a proposal for an oral presentation or a poster.

We remind you that each participant may submit up to two proposals, in Spanish and English, from 15 October 2025 to 20 December 2025. Proposals should be submitted via the web platform: https://matrix.aesla.org.es/aesla2026, and will be assigned to the thematic panel chosen for review (each proposal may only be submitted to one panel).

For more detailed information about the AESLA 2026 conference, please visit our website: https://wpd.ugr.es/~aesla26/

If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact us at the following email address: 

We look forward to seeing you in Granada!

Elena Fernández de Molina Ortés, Rocío Cruz Ortiz and Edyta Waluch de la Torre

Coordinators of the Organising Committee for the AESLA 2026 Conference