Upstate Call in New York 2025 Report: Bridging Theory and Practice Through Praxis

Daeun Shin-Winans and Kévin Le Blévec, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, New York, USA

Held at The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in New York on October 25, 2025, Upstate CALL served as a profound testament to the power of praxis: the synthesis of theory and reflection in action. In an era where technological advancement often outpaces curriculum development, this conference reaffirmed that impactful innovations happen most effectively at the intersection of academic theory and the lived reality of the classroom.

Upstate CALL 2026 will be held again at RIT on October 10th, 2026. Please see UpstateCALL.com for more information and to submit a proposal to present.

The cornerstone of the 2025 conference was the application of action research (Burns, 2011), a bottom-up empowerment model of teachers as researchers. Presenters at the conference demonstrated a cyclical process of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting to transform their unique language teaching contexts. Grounded in the interactionist approach of second language acquisition, the conference explored diverse environments spanning both second and foreign language contexts, involving target languages such as English, French, Haitian Creole, Korean, and Spanish. These inquiries moved beyond technical utility to account for the socio-cultural-political-emotional lives of learners, fostering an environment dedicated to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion that have been erased from some teaching context.

Immersive Frontiers: VR

The first thematic cluster of the conference, anchored by Tricia Thrasher’s (IMMERSE) plenary talk, moved the conversation of virtual reality (VR) beyond novelty and toward a framework of presence: the psychological sensation of “being there.” The affordances of high-immersion VR, such as authenticity, contextualization, embodiment, and the creation of a safe space (Kaplan-Rakowski, 2025), act as pedagogical levers. These immersive experiences allow for simulations and role-playing scenarios that would not be logistically or socially plausible in a physical classroom, affecting various language learning factors. Thrasher illustrated how language learners, by interacting with AI-based communicators within a 3D environment, effectively reduced foreign language anxiety and improved engagement by participating in a low-stakes environment for target language use.

Expanding on this, Michael Winans leveraged VR for cultural competence, allowing English learners to navigate complex sociocultural cues by engaging with stand-up comedy. Similarly, Millaray Jesús Durán Ramos showed how this technology builds self-confidence in pre-service English teachers in Chile, bridging the geographic gap between the teacher and the target culture. Complementing the user-focused research of the other presenters by providing a vital designer’s perspective, Kévin Le Blévec and his colleagues developed an AI-integrated oral communicative tool for French learners that ensures software architecture aligns with interactionist goals. Together, these presenters showed that VR can be a pedagogical tool capable of mitigating psychological barriers in language learning.

Developing critical AI literacy

The second thematic cluster shifted toward the "learning with AI" paradigm (Son et al., 2025). Here, natural language processing in large language models was treated as a site for developing critical AI literacy rather than a mere shortcut for language production. In this context, praxis involves moving beyond the functional how-to of AI and toward a deconstruction of the black box of machine-generated text.

Phillippe Chavasse evaluated the performance of AI translators, encouraging French learners to become critical users of this technology, moving from passive reliance to active, comparative analysis. Similarly, Irina Parker created a critical space for English learners to scrutinize AI-generated text, identifying its stylistic patterns and comparing them with student produced-text. This trajectory was further extended by Melissa McCarron and Junior Pierre Eden Février, whose medical communication tool for Spanish speakers highlighted the necessity of critical engagement with the technology. These presentations collectively argued that the teacher-researcher’s role is to evaluate AI for a pedagogical tool that serves localized human needs, helping learners to navigate an increasingly automated world with a discerning, analytical eye.

Agency, ecology, and identity within CMC

The final set of presentations examined computer-mediated communication (CMC) through an ecological lens, viewing digital spaces as vibrant systems of social affordances. This perspective posits that language learning is a relationship between the learner and their environment (van Lier, 2004). In this context, praxis involves moving beyond the efficiency of target language use and toward an analysis of learner agency and identity within interaction.

Daeun Shin-Winan’s research illuminated the ideological boundaries Korean learners can encounter in digital spaces, reminding us that digital interaction is a site where power and identity are constantly negotiated. Continuing this ecological inquiry, Christopher James Kausch II further analyzed how the specific affordances of Zoom directly shape engagement for English learners. Kausch’s work demonstrated that the technological design of the digital environment can influence the quality of participation. Finally, Namsook Kim proposed a transformative multimodal practice to enhance the agency of multilingual writers. By locating writing within the ecological environment of these writers, Kim argued that pedagogy should consider the ecology of language learners to enable them to fully participate in interactional practices. These talks emphasized that as digital landscapes grow more complex, the teacher-researcher should provide necessary scaffolding for learners to assert their voices.

Conclusion: Sustaining the cycle of inquiry

The value of Upstate CALL 2025 comes from a commitment to the human element within a high-tech field. By bridging the gap between CALL theories and classroom realities, the conference presenters proved that our primary motivation must always be the enhancement of the language learning experience. Whether through high-immersion VR or critical AI analysis, the teacher-researcher remains the vital link that ensures technology is used ethically, contextually, and with a focus on learner empowerment.

Looking forward, I encourage readers to embrace the role of the teacher-researcher by piloting their own action research project. To those who wonder where to start, here are some ideas:

• Join a community by getting involved in local initiatives and practitioner networks.
• Be resourceful. If you are worried about lack of institutional funding, improving learning experience can begin with the creative adoption of existing technologies for pedagogical purposes.
• Don’t be afraid of failures. Not all projects are going to be successful. Failure stories are just as vital as successes. Documenting and sharing these challenges builds a collective repository of knowledge.

It is through this localized inquiry and shared praxis that we ensure our field continues to prioritize human-centric pedagogy over mere technical utility, fostering a more inclusive and equitable future for language learners everywhere.

If you are interested in learning more about Upstate CALL, please visit UpstateCALL.com for more information and to submit a proposal. This year, Upstate CALL 2026 will be held at RIT on October 10th, 2026.

References

Burns, A. (2011). Action research in the field of second language teaching and learning. In E. Hinkel (ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning (pp. 237-253). Routledge.

Kaplan-Rakowski, R. (2025). Virtual reality-assisted language learning (VRALL). In L. McCallum & D. Tafazoli (Eds.), The Palgrave encyclopedia of computer-assisted language learning, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-51447-0_6-1.

Kern, R., Ware, P., & Warschauer, M. (2016). Computer-mediated communication and language learning. In G. Hall (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of English language learning (pp. 793-814). Routledge.

Son, J.-B., Ružić, N. K., & Philpott, A. (2025). Artificial intelligence technologies and applications for language learning and teaching. Journal of China Computer Assisted Language Learning, 5(1), 94-112.

Van Lier, L. (2004). The ecology and semiotics of language learning: A sociocultural perspective. Kluwer Academic Publishers.

Dr. Daeun Shin-Winans is an Adjunct Professor at Rochester Institute of Technology. Her research focuses on the social meanings and mediating processes of emotional discourse, with a particular interest in online communities.

Kévin Le Blévec earned one master's degree in Foreign Languages and Literature, followed by a master's in Education and Training Technology from the University of Rennes 2, France. He currently teaches French and manages the Languages and Technology Center at the Rochester Institute of Technology.