This study investigates the impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI), specifically ChatGPT, on personalised grammar instruction in English as a Second Language (ESL) settings. Using a 2x2 factorial design and a mixed-methods approach, the research examines how two dimensions of personalisation—content (based on language proficiency) and topic (based on learner interests)—affect student motivation, engagement, and perceived task suitability. A sample of 140 Swedish students was divided into four experimental groups to explore the independent and combined effects of these personalisation strategies. Results from MANOVA and observational data show that combining content and topic personalisation significantly enhances motivation and task completion rates, supporting the theoretical basis in Self-Determination Theory (SDT). The study introduces the Personalization-Motivation Integration Framework (PMIF), which conceptualizes how relevance and autonomy jointly drive engagement in AI-mediated learning. These findings suggest that GAI tools can play a pivotal role in inclusive, individualized education by aligning instructional content with learner needs and interests.

This study explores the integration of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in an advanced Spanish language course, with a focus on learner motivation and communicative competence. Although GenAI tools, such as chatbots and adaptive feedback systems, have been increasingly implemented in higher education, their application in Spanish as a Foreign Language (SFL) classroom remains under-researched. The research involved 41 students from two sections of an advanced Spanish course at a Canadian university, one for foreign language learners and one for heritage speakers. Participants completed a pre-task questionnaire, engaged in a GenAI supported collaborative task, and reflected on their experiences through a post-task survey. The primary task involved using ChatGPT to gather cultural information about a Spanish-speaking country and create a promotional campaign. Data were collected using both quantitative (Likert-scale surveys) and qualitative (open-ended reflections) methods. Findings indicate that most students felt comfortable and motivated when using GenAI tools and perceived them as useful for accessing real-time feedback and supporting personalized learning. The task was described as engaging and well-organized, although some students found it too simple to fully challenge their language abilities. Participants also identified limitations, including concerns about content accuracy, overreliance, and the lack of cultural and emotional nuance in GenAI outputs. The study underscores the importance of task design, GenAI literacy, and the instructor’s role when implementing GenAI tools in language instruction. It advocates for a hybrid approach that combines human expertise with GenAI capabilities to foster motivation, learner autonomy, and communicative competence, addressing an underexplored gap in the literature.

In learning a foreign language, access to comprehensible input is a critical success factor. However, at early stages, when learners are still below an intermediate-proficiency level, finding level-appropriate and engaging materials is highly problematic. Although the Internet abounds in text and multimedia materials in many languages, most of them are too difficult to be useful for lower-proficiency language learners. The present project aimed to establish whether the affordances of large language models (LLMs) can be harnessed to turn authentic audio, video, and text materials into comprehensible input for independent elementary-level language learners. The present article reports on the outcomes of a research and development project that adopts a hybrid approach to simplifying authentic materials, combining affordances of LLMs with careful prompt engineering and rule-based refinement. The article details the hybrid sequential pipeline system and the results of two rounds of evaluation: language teacher ratings and automated text analysis indices. Based on the outcome of these evaluations, it is concluded that the proposed approach can provide an efficient way of simplifying authentic content for and by lower-proficiency language learners. Directions for future research and development are also proposed.

Innovative Language Teaching Practices in Higher Education in a Post-COVID Era Edited by Androulla Athanasiou, Stavroulla Hadjiconstantinou, and Maria Christoforou Published in 2024 by Ubiquity Press Ltd. Pages: 163 ISBN (Paperback): 9781914481642 Website:https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/96890 Book DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334/bdd Innovative Language Teaching Practices in Higher Education in a Post-COVID Era is a collection of studies that explore how innovative language practices have inspired language educators to teach linguistic skills and promote learner autonomy and critical awareness in navigating the complexities of digitally mediated communication. The volume also provides theoretical and practical implications relevant for language instructors, teacher educators, and curriculum designers in digitally mediated environments.

Online language teaching has become a reality for many second language (L2) programmes that were delivered remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many L2 tutors had to redesign their courses for online delivery and explored a range of online learning and teaching tools, designs, and platforms. This paper discusses how a language module has been redesigned in response to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT). The initial reason for this migration was due to the pandemic, but it has provided an opportunity to review the teaching and learning methods used in the module, its course structure, design, and learning materials, and to improve their accessibility. Student engagement and interaction with course content, instructions, and other learners were also reviewed. Two years after the course first moved online, the module convener and students have settled into the new digital environment and explored ways to maximise the technological affordances in ways that can enhance students' learning experiences and digital literacies. This paper presents the tools, methods, and techniques that have been implemented in this course, alongside relevant literature, and student feedback. Results highlight the significance of a well-structured and multimodal VLE that fosters student interaction in the L2, but also that achieving this requires ample time for tutors to reconsider and adapt various aspects of the course.

This article discusses the controversial issue of which variety of English learners and instructors should use. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 4, Target 4.7 states that learners need knowledge to promote peace and cultural diversity. It is argued here that a broad awareness of English varieties is a way to achieve this goal, and that the use of English in online environments can contribute towards its attainment. Two surveys were carried out to investigate how attitudes to varieties of English and to non-standard linguistic norms are changing. They were sent to students of English on online courses at a Swedish university in 2018-2019 and 2019-2021, and were responded to by 100 and 92 informants, respectively. The first survey demonstrated that the informants did indeed have a less strict view of which variety of English to learn and use, while the second survey demonstrated that features such as the omission of subjects, and informal spellings such as “yeah” appear to have become standardised and acceptable in all environments. These results appear to support what has been discussed in the literature, namely, that the use of English online is leading learners to review their beliefs and adopt a less strict view of varieties and norms. Thus, it is argued that online English usage can contribute towards the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 4, Target 4.7, cultural diversity and an awareness of the multifaceted dimensions of a global language in the 21st century.

Computer-Assisted Language Learning in the Global South: Exploring Challenges and Opportunities for Students and Teachers Edited by Lee McCallum and Dara Tafazoli Published in 2024 by Taylor & Francis Pages: 230 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003495956 ISBN13: 9781003495956 Website https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/edit/10.4324/9781003495956/computer-assisted-language-learning-global-south-lee-mccallum-dara-tafazoli In recent decades, Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) has evolved into a dynamic area of language education research. Nevertheless, a notable gap persists in the literature: the Global South's perspectives, challenges, and innovations remain underrepresented. Here, the “Global South” is not merely a terrain and warrants a definition because it foregrounds the volume’s value. Global South refers to historically marginalised regions such as Asia, Africa, and Latin America, where eduscape is affected by postcolonial legacies and systemic inequalities, in contrast to the Global North. “Computer-Assisted Language Learning in the Global South: Exploring Challenges and Opportunities for Students and Teachers,” edited by Lee McCallum and Dara Tafazoli (2025), is a timely contribution to the field of technology-enhanced language learning in the Global South.

This reflection on practice study explores the critical role of constructive alignment (CA) in the successful implementation of corpus-based data-driven learning (DDL) in secondary education, focusing on two interventions conducted at an Australian secondary school. While DDL offers potential for enhancing language learning through corpus consultation, its integration into secondary school contexts remains hindered by limited teacher training, administrative support, or alignment with pedagogical goals. In this exploratory study, one DDL intervention targeting passive voice use in science writing succeeded, yielding learning gains and positive feedback. However, a parallel intervention for English as an Additional Language/Dialect (EAL/D) students, which aimed at mastering cognitive verbs, failed despite identical resources and the assistance of an experienced DDL practitioner. Qualitative data from students’ discussion forum responses, written assignments and revisions, and post-intervention group interviews suggest the failure stemmed from a lack of CA, as materials designed for one cohort were misaligned with the EAL/D learners’ needs, prioritising discrete linguistic items over functional understanding. Student feedback highlighted a preference for simpler tools like Google, reflecting poor engagement with DDL. Our findings suggest that without aligning DDL activities, learning outcomes, and assessments to the teachers’ and learners’ contexts, interventions risk failure. We therefore advocate for increased backward design, teacher-researcher collaboration, and ongoing evaluation to ensure DDL’s efficacy, offering a cautionary tale for future implementations.

The (M)other Tongue project is a contribution to research in applied linguistics on the use of generative intelligent tools (AI) for additional language learning. 2023 saw the commercialisation on-line of several AI-enabled multilingual video services, with at least one including lip-synchronisation and translation functions. The (M)other Tongue project aims to determine relevant pedagogical uses of this type of video-platform for foreign language learning by evaluating the possible perceptive and imitational value of translated videos of adult learners of additional languages. This pilot study worked with fifteen volunteer university lecturers for whom videos of them speaking their L1 were translated into another language. Both the quality of the video products and the emotional impact on the participants were then assessed and recommendations made as to how such tools could further several areas of applied linguistics inquiry, including ideal L2 self-theory, motivation, imitation and pronunciation. This article presents and discusses this preliminary study and the next steps envisaged for a larger-scale study with non-specialist students of English.

Some people believe that immersive virtual reality (VR) and, by extension, the metaverse, will become integral parts of daily life. There have also been suggestions that the metaverse could become a virtual world where language learners have alternate identities as second language (L2) speakers. Considering the potential implications of immersive VR and the metaverse on L2 learning, the aims of this study were twofold: (1) to understand the types of interactional acts L2 learners use in immersive VR when communicating with others in the target language and (2) to evaluate their perceptions toward L2 interaction in immersive VR. Four L2 English learners at a Japanese university participated in the study. Each participant interacted with others through VRChat, a popular social VR platform that has been described as a proto-metaverse. Interactions in VRChat were video recorded and analysed using interactional framework (Benson 2015a, 2015b). Semi-structured interview data was also collected following the participants’ interactions in VRChat. Findings from the study revealed that the learners used a variety of interactional acts when communicating with others in VRChat. Results also showed that the participants had largely favourable perceptions of L2 interaction in the proto-metaverse. That is, while negative interactions and physical discomfort were potential issues, the English learners believed the virtual environment promoted authentic language learning and learner autonomy.