Sponsoring Organization: Yokohama JALT (YoJALT)
The New Auto-Peer: Free Automated Writing Evaluation
Philip McCarthy, Jerry Talandis Jr., and Theron Muller
60-min session summary: This interactive workshop will present the new, upgraded Auto-Peer, free automated writing evaluation software developed for the English language learning classroom. While Auto-Peer has assisted thousands of students worldwide since its initial 2021 release, the advent of generative AI (GenAI) required the developers to rethink its features in light of new developments in natural language processing. This new, upgraded Auto-Peer leverages the advantages of GenAI models to evaluate student writing and provide students with ethical, research-informed options for improving their writing, leaving the actual revision process in students’ hands. We will explain how this updated Auto-Peer has been used in classrooms throughout the world and how you might use it to streamline writing feedback in your own writing classrooms.
The New Auto-Peer: Leveraging GenAI in Automated Feedback
Philip McCarthy, Jerry Talandis Jr., and Theron Muller
30-min session summary: This research-oriented presentation introduces the new Auto-Peer’s customizations for Japanese beginner-level learners. We describe desirable aspects of generative AI (GenAI) output leveraged to help students further improve their academic writing. Specifically, we describe how comparisons of texts written by students in Japan (n = 68) and the UAE (n = 81) with GenAI-generated texts revealed insufficient cohesion and, in the Japanese students’ texts, inconsistent verb use. We explain how, using these insights, the new Auto-Peer leverages these features of the more proficient GenAI-generated texts to ethically inform students about how to improve their writing.
Theron Muller is an associate professor in the Faculty of Human Sciences at Waseda University. His 2018 doctorate from The Open University, UK, explored the publication practices of Japan-based language teachers. He has published and presented on academic publishing, English language teaching and learning, and teacher development.
Philip McCarthy is an associate professor of English at the American University of Sharjah. His research combines applied linguistics, computational linguistics, artificial intelligence, and writing pedagogy. He is the creator of Auto-Peer, an AI-supported intelligent tutoring system. His current research focuses on computational approaches to language learning and writing.
Jerry Talandis Jr. is a professor at the University of Toyama, Japan. His research focuses on communicative language teaching, academic writing, feedback literacy, and the ethical integration of generative AI into language education. He leads a JSPS-funded project adapting Auto-Peer for L2 writing classrooms in Japan.
Sponsoring Organization: Pearson Japan K.K.
Developing Critical Thinkers for Real-World Communication
Megumi Uemi
30-min session summary: In the 21st century, language education must move beyond teaching linguistic knowledge to developing students’ ability to think, communicate, and engage globally. This presentation demonstrates how the Impact Issues series can serve as a foundation for designing critical thinking–infused instruction in Japanese L2 contexts. Drawing on a Writing-to-Think learning log model, the session illustrates how structured tasks can transform textbook content into opportunities for discussion, reflection, and presentation. This would help learners move from local voice to global expression while developing both critical thinking and the ability to articulate ideas in L2.
Megumi Uemi is a lecturer at Toyo University’s Center for International Education and Exchange and a doctoral candidate in English language education at the University of Tsukuba. Her research explores L2 critical thinking performance, writing-to-think pedagogy, and how linguistic and cultural contexts shape students’ meaning-making in English-mediated and intercultural classrooms.
Sponsoring Organization: Tokyo JALT
Building Digital Workflows for Policy Research
Kane Linton
60-min session summary: This workshop examines the use of digital workflows for language policy research. Participants will explore how digital methods can support the analysis of language education policy documents across different educational and linguistic contexts. Through hands-on activities, attendees will compare summaries written by humans with AI-generated summaries, develop thematic coding categories, and discuss issues of reliability in AI-assisted research. The session will also introduce the use of policy indices for comparative analysis, including approaches to comparing policies across different languages and systems. In addition, participants will explore methods for building searchable policy corpora and longitudinal repositories for comparative policy research.
What Is Q Methodology and Why Use It?
Kane Linton
30-min session summary: This workshop provides an introduction to Q methodology and its application in linguistics and language education research. Participants will explore how Q methodology can be used to investigate subjectivity, viewpoints, and shared perspectives in educational contexts. The session will introduce key concepts, including concourse development, Q-set design, Q-sorting, and by-person factor analysis. Common misconceptions and challenges will also be discussed. Drawing on examples from EFL research, the workshop will demonstrate how Q methodology can be used to examine learner experiences, classroom perspectives, motivation, identity, and language learning environments.
Kane Linton is a specially appointed professor at Wayo Women’s University and a PhD candidate in Linguistics at Monash University. His research focuses on language education policy, policy enactment, and educational heterotopic spaces. In his free time, he enjoys hiking with his dog, Bart.
Sponsoring Organization: Tokyo JALT
From Corpora to Practice: Creating and Using Materials
Sarah Deutchman
60-min session summary: This workshop introduces corpora as a practical pedagogical tool. Participants will learn how to use corpora to help learners develop both language comprehension and production. Drawing on Schmidt’s (2010) noticing hypothesis, the workshop examines how directing learner attention to patterns in corpora can aid in language acquisition. Attendees will engage with corpus-based materials designed to draw students’ attention to collocations (i.e., words that co-occur frequently) and colligations (i.e., grammatical patterns associated with specific words).
Using AI as a Language Teaching Resource
Sarah Deutchman
30-min session summary: AI tools can efficiently support content creation, lesson planning, and curriculum development, adapt materials to different learner needs (Besmer et al., 2025), and potentially increase engagement and motivation (Binhammad et al., 2024). This workshop explores how various large language models (LLMs) can streamline materials creation, including designing handouts, simplifying language, and generating ideas. Participants will examine which LLMs may be best suited to different purposes, and how to maintain meaningful human oversight throughout the materials-development process. They will also learn to identify and address common AI limitations, such as hallucinations, logical errors, and CEFR inconsistencies.
Sarah Deutchman, Global Teaching Fellow at Tokyo International University, researches data-driven learning, learner autonomy, and vocabulary acquisition. She co-edits TLT Wired and is Tokyo JALT’s Edtech Chair. A data science boot camp graduate, she continues studying machine learning and NLP, driven by a keen interest in AI’s role in education.
Sponsoring Organization: Literature in Language Teaching Special Interest Group (LiLT SIG)
Reregistration and Creative Writing in EFL
Masayuki Teranishi
60-min session summary: This workshop explores how the stylistic concept of “reregistration” can be used to develop creative writing activities in EFL contexts. Employing literary examples such as “Rules for Dwarf-Throwing,” participants will examine how institutional and procedural registers can be transformed into creative and expressive texts. Through practical rewriting activities, participants will experiment with shifts in register, genre, voice, and communicative purpose while reflecting on their stylistic effects. The workshop demonstrates how stylistics-informed creative writing activities foster creativity, close reading, and metalinguistic awareness. This would encourage learners to reflect on authenticity, social meaning, and the cultural effects of language use.
Translation, AI, and Intercultural Communication in EFL
Masayuki Teranishi
30-min session summary: This presentation compares published English translations of Japanese literary works with AI-generated translations to examine differences in nuance, cultural representation, and communicative effect. It also explores translation and interpretation issues in tourism and environmental communication texts collected through fieldwork in Japan and other countries. Through these examples, the presentation discusses the possibilities and limitations of AI-assisted translation in intercultural communication and English language education. Particular attention is given to how AI-generated translations can help Japanese learners of English develop greater awareness of style, audience, nuance, and culturally appropriate expression across literary, educational, and professional contexts.
Masayuki Teranishi is a professor at the School of Human Science and Environment, University of Hyogo, Japan. He is the Japanese Ambassador for the Poetics and Linguistics Association and former chair of the Japan Association of International Liberal Arts. He is an editorial board member of Journal of Literary Semantics.
Sponsoring Organization: Macquarie University
Project-Based Learning Through Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) and Global Internships
Josh Kidd and Rory Banwell
60-min session summary: This workshop explores how project-based learning can foster intercultural competence, global engagement, and transferable skills through COIL and international internship programs. Drawing on examples from a Japanese university, Macquarie University’s Professional and Community Engagement (PACE) program, and international partnerships, the session demonstrates how students engage in authentic projects that connect academic learning with real-world and cross-cultural experiences. Participants will examine practical approaches for integrating project-based learning into face-to-face, online, and blended courses. The workshop highlights strategies for developing communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and global competence while providing adaptable models for diverse educational contexts.
AI in Language Education: Perspectives From Students and Teachers
Josh Kidd and Rory Banwell
30-min session summary: This presentation examines the integration of artificial intelligence in language education through the perspectives of both students and teachers. Drawing on data from a large-scale student survey of more than 1,500 university students the session explores patterns of AI use, perceived benefits, challenges, and confidence in evaluating AI-generated content. Teacher survey data and classroom experiences provide a complementary perspective, allowing for comparison between student and teacher perceptions. Attention will be given to areas of convergence and divergence between these groups and the implications for teaching, learning, assessment, curriculum design, and AI literacy development.
Joshua Alexander Kidd is an Associate Professor in the English Program of Utsunomiya University (EPUU), where his work focuses on English for General Academic Purposes (EGAP). His interests include COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning), teacher training, and intercultural communication.
Rory Donal Banwell is an Associate Professor in the English Program of Utsunomiya University (EPUU). His work focuses on English for General Academic Purposes (EGAP) and project-based learning, with a particular interest in designing student-centered, task-driven approaches to learning.
