Plenary Speakers



Richard Donato

University of Pittsburgh



Enacting the Work of Language Teaching Through High-Leverage Practices


Current research in language learning and development has led to the identification of a set of specific instructional practices that all language teachers need to enact to enable learning to occur in their English as a foreign language (EFL) classrooms, be it entry-level foundational EFL courses or English-medium instruction (EMI) courses. This plenary will explore the work of teaching in general and specifically the work of language teaching by presenting a set of instructional practices, referred to as high leverage teaching practices. These practices are based on sociocultural theory, research on student learning, and the wisdom of classroom practice. Example high leverage practices will be presented, for example providing teacher feedback to students during spoken communication. Instructional tools for assisting teachers with ways to carry out these practices will be shared.

Richard Donato (Ph.D., Linguistics, University of Delaware) is professor in the Department of Teaching, Learning, and Leading in the School of Education at the University of Pittsburgh and holds secondary appointments in the Departments of French and Italian, Hispanic Languages and Literatures, and Linguistics. His research interests include early foreign language learning, sociocultural theory, classroom discourse analysis, and teacher education. His research on foreign language education earned him the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages/Modern Language Journal Paul Pimsleur award (1997 and 2006), the Northeast Conference Freeman Award (2004), and the French Institute of Washington Award (2003). In 2016, he won the University of Pittsburgh’s Provost award for doctoral student research mentoring. In 2019, he was awarded the Pennsylvania State Modern Language Association Frank Mulhern Award for Outstanding Leadership in World Languages and Cultures. He is the co-author of the books A Tale of Two Schools: Developing Sustainable Early Language Programs (2010) and Volumes I and II of Enacting the work of language teaching: High leverage teaching practices (2017 and 2021).




Lucilla Lopriore

Roma Tre University



A Pathway to Early Language Learning: Challenges and Perspectives in Early English Language
Oracy Development from Research in Multilingual Contexts


This presentation explores both current changes occurring in early foreign language classroom practices in multilingual contexts, and the role that oracy education has gained in foreign language teaching. Within these contexts, English, the most widely taught language at primary level, has undergone several changes and has become a global language (Graddol, 2006). One of these changes is its use as a Lingua Franca (ELF) that is establishing itself as the most widely used form of plurilithic oral communication adopted by people of different language backgrounds to communicate with each other (Pennycook, 2009). These new emerging language landscapes highlight two main challenges to a successful implementation of early foreign language learning: that of working in multilingual contexts, and that of sustaining young learners’ oracy development in both the language of schooling and in English. Both challenges highlight the need for teachers, usually non-native speakers of English, of designing and implementing effective ways for sustaining communication in a global language (English) among children who may have different languages of origin, and within a context where successful learning mostly takes place through spoken exchanges, action-oriented cooperative approaches, but also thanks to out-of-school exposure, as confirmed by some research studies (Enever, 2011; Helòt , 2017; Lopriore, 2015; 2023; Moon & Nikolov, 2000; Nikolov & Mihaljević Djigunović, 2019). Research has acknowledged oracy development as central in early language learning and teaching approaches used in the primary classroom (Christie, 2016; Goh, 2017). Learners who speak English as an additional language, or those who have a migrant background, make very good progress over time and can be very effective, if a strong focus is posed on the teachers’ carefully devised integration of speaking and listening skills, alongside thoughtfully targeted interventions, and planned reflection on the language of schooling

References

Christie, C. (2016). Speaking spontaneously in the modern foreign language classroom: Tools for supporting successful target language conversation.
          The Language Learning Journal 44(1), 74–89.

Enever, J. (Ed). (2011). ELLiE: Early Language Learning in Europe. London, UK: British Council.

Goh, C. (2017). Language awareness and the teaching of listening and speaking. In P. Garret & J. Cots Eds.), The Routledge encyclopedia of language
         awareness (pp.92–107). Routledge.

Graddol, D. (2006) English Next. The British Council.

Helòt, C. (2017). Awareness raising and multilingualism in primary education. In J. Cenoz, D. Gorter, & S. May (Eds.), Language awareness and multilingualism:
         Encyclopedia of language and education series (pp.247–262). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02240-6

Lopriore L. (2015) Investigating learners’ development in time. In S. Letica Krevelj and J. Mijaljevic Djigunovic (Eds.) UZRT 2014 Empirical studies in applied
         linguistics (pp.141–159). F-Press.

Lopriore, L. (2023). Content and language integrated learning in pre-primary education: Moving towards developmentally appropriate practices. In A. Otto &
         B. Cortina-Perez (Eds.), Handbook of CLIL in pre-primary education (pp.17–29). Springer.

Moon, J. & Nikolov, M. (Eds.). (2000). Research into teaching English to young learners: International perspectives. University Press Pécs.

Nikolov, M., & Mihaljević Djigunović, J. (2011). All shades of every color: An overview of early teaching and learning of foreign languages. Annual Review of
         Applied Linguistics, 31, 95–119.

Nikolov, M., & Mihaljević Djigunović, J. (2019). Teaching young language learners. In X. Gao (Ed.), Second handbook of English language teaching
         (pp. 577–600). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-58542-0_31-1 . Online ISBN978-3-319-58542-0

Pennycook, A. (2009). Plurilithic Englishes: Towards a 3D model. In K. Murata & J. Jenkins (Eds.) Global Englishes in Asian contexts (pp.194–207). Palgrave
         Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230239531_12

Lucilla Lopriore is a retired professor at Roma Tre University since 2021. She received her master’s degree in TEFL from the UK and a Ph.D. in Italian L2 from Italy. She was TESOL Italy President from 1996–1998 and Directors Board in TESOL International from 2001–2004. Also, she was an Italian coordinator in several research projects, including Primary school (1999–2000), ElliE (2006–2010), National Research on ELF (2016–2019), and Erasmus+ ENRICH Project (2018–2021). She is a coursebook author, and a teacher educator in ELT, EMI, and CLIL. Her research interests include language education, CLIL and EMI, early language learning, assessment, ELF, and multilingualism. She has published extensively; her most recent volume is Transforming Practices for the EFL Classroom, TESOL Press.




Attapol Thamrongrattanarit

Chulalongkorn University



Language Teaching and Learning in the Era of ChatGPT


We will explore the transformative potential of ChatGPT, an AI-powered conversational agent, and its impact on language education in the digital age. Delving into key features and functionalities, we highlight ChatGPT as a powerful language learning tool for interactive conversations, immediate feedback, and personalized materials. While showcasing practical examples of integration in diverse language teaching contexts, we address ethical considerations and challenges, emphasizing responsible and effective use. By embracing ChatGPT and similar AI technologies, language educators can foster dynamic and interactive language learning environments, nurturing competent communicators prepared for an interconnected world.

Attapol Thamrongrattanarit is an Associate Professor of Computational Linguistics at Chulalongkorn University and Program Director at True Digital Academy. He is interested in data science, artificial intelligence, and natural language processing, the technology that enables computers to perform language tasks.


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