Upcoming Other Events

Dear colleagues!

We are pleased to announce that, due to popular demand, we have extended the Call for Papers deadline by two weeks for the Call of Papers for the 11^th Biennial International Conference on the Linguistics of Contemporary English (BICLCE), to be held from 3^rd to 5^th July 2026 in Austria, at the University of Klagenfurt.

For over two decades, the BICLCE conference series has been a forum for researchers who are interested in the linguistics of contemporary English. It is open to different theoretical and methodological perspectives. Previous conferences were held in Edinburgh (2005), Toulouse (2007), London (2009), Osnabrück (2011), Austin TX (2013), Madison WI (2015), Vigo (2017), Bamberg (2019), Ljubljana (2022) and Alicante (2024). BICLCE 2026 wishes to continue this long-standing tradition of exploring contemporary English.

We are pleased to announce the following keynote speakers:  Daniel Davis, Maria Kuteeva, Marc Xu, Barbara Seidlhofer, and José Fajardo.

This time, BICLCE11 comes with an additional thematic focus on “English in a geopolitically changing world”, motivated by the major changes the world has experienced in the last several years which may potentially influence how English is used and perceived internationally.  Therefore, we are happy to invite researchers to submit proposals addressing this topic in particular. Beyond this special theme, contributions related to English are also welcome in any of the following fields/areas: syntax, morphology, sociolinguistics, semantics, pragmatics, discourse analysis, cognitive linguistics, phonetics/phonology, applied linguistics, and more.

We invite proposals for contributions to the conference, either for the General Sessions or for one of seven Thematic Sessions:

1. Exploring contemporary English(es) using the BSLVC database
2. English as a catalyst of change? Gender inclusivity, cross-linguistic dynamics, and colonial legacies
3. Comparing the incomparable – Exploring the synchronic relevance of historical sociolinguistic insights
4. Social variation and norms in Outer Circle Englishes
5. A matter of concord: English agreement across varieties and registers
6. When English is no longer a ‘foreign’ language – Signifiers, attitudes and didactic approaches
7. The applied linguistics of ELF communication

For all sessions, we invite proposals for individual papers consisting of a 20-minute presentation followed by 10 minutes of discussion.

Abstracts should clearly indicate the theoretical framework, the research question(s), elaborate data and methodology and discuss (expected) findings. The abstract should not exceed 300 words (excluding references). The abstract should be adapted to the Chicago Manual of Style (18^th edition), and be anonymized before its submission as they will undergo anonymous peer-review.

The abstracts should be submitted electronically and as either docx or pdf files, using the following template: https://conference3.aau.at/event/156/attachments/116/305/Template_BICLCE11.docx.

The author(s) should submit their abstract via https://conference3.aau.at/event/156/abstracts/.

The EXTENDED deadline is January 31^st, 2026. Notifications will be sent out by 15^th March.

Please forward this information to your colleagues, students and interested parties.

We look forward to welcoming you in Klagenfurt!

All the very best,

Nikola, for the BICLCE11 organization team

Call for Papers - Special Issue Winter 2027  

Guest editors:  

Ibtissem Knouzi, York University  

Penny Kinnear, OISE - University of Toronto  

Merrill Swain, OISE - University of Toronto  

Proposal deadline: February 01, 2026  

Full paper deadline: June 15, 2026  

Vygotskian sociocultural theory: Transforming L2 teaching, learning, assessment, and  research  

Vygotskian Sociocultural Theory (V-SCT), as a theory of mind, has had a major impact on  second language (L2) theory and practice over the last four decades. It has challenged L2  educators' understanding of the genesis of L2 development and effective pedagogy through a  set of principles (see Swain, Kinnear & Steinman (2015) for a comprehensive and accessible  review) such as the central role of interpsychological mediation, and the focus on conceptbased  teaching and curriculum design. However, as L2 educators and researchers, often trained in  cognitivist paradigms, redefine their roles and attempt to reconcile previous practices and  beliefs with new concepts, many confusions persist (Knouzi, in press). These confusions exist  especially with respect to key concepts such as ZPD vs. i+1; mediation vs. scaffolding; role of  concept-based language instruction in form-focused instruction; role of affect vs. positive  psychology; and Dynamic Assessment vs. proficiency testing.  

This special issue seeks to explain key V-SCT concepts and demonstrate their relevance to L2  theory and practice in Canadian contexts, as demonstrated by Canadian scholars through  conceptual papers and empirical studies.  

We invite submissions that examine and critique L2 development, teaching, and assessment  practices, and teacher education from a V-SCT perspective, addressing topics such as, but not  limited to, the following:  

- Role of mediation in learning and development, focusing on the range, affordances, and  constraints of mediational means (including digital and multimodal) in L2 language  classrooms.  

- Role of language as a cognitive tool (e.g., languaging, collaborative dialogue,  instructional interactions)  

- Concept-based instruction in L2 classrooms and in teacher education programs  - Dialectic relation between affect and cognition  

- Assessment  

- Activity theory-informed analysis of learner/teacher development 

Papers in English and French will be considered. We welcome papers for inclusion in one of  three sections: “Full-Length Research Articles” (original research), “Perspectives” (theoretical  explorations of relevant issues), and “In the Classroom” (pedagogical focus). Please refer to  the TESL Canada Journal author guidelines for more information:  

http://www.teslcanadajournal.ca/index.php/tesl/about/submissions  

Interested authors are invited to submit a 400-word abstract (including references) to  teslcanadajournal@tesl.ca by February 01, 2026. Please indicate clearly the category to which  your abstract belongs. Notice of abstract acceptance will be emailed by March 01, 2026. Full  manuscripts are due June 15, 2026, and will be subject to a rigorous blind review process. In  line with SCT principles, we will follow a process that fosters collegial mediation and creates  opportunities for scholarly development. In a two-phase process, each contributor will be asked  to review a paper in the special issue (blind review). Following the first revisions and  resubmission, all contributors will have the option to receive additional feedback through  discussion at a meeting attended by SCT colleagues before submitting a final version. The  special issue will be published in January-March, 2027.  

If you have any questions or queries about this special issue, please contact Ibtissem Knouzi at  iknouzi@yorku.ca

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: unicollabconference2026@gmail.com; or directly to anna.nicolaou@cut.ac.cy; annanicolaou0@gmail.com