AL Forum, August 2026

Letter from the Editors: Where Are We Heading?

Andy Jiahao Liu, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA

Curtis Green-Eneix, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China

Language Assessment

Alex Agyena Duah, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

J. Dylan Burton, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Nothing makes students groan more than the anticipation of a test, but teachers know that tests and assessments are an indispensable part of language education. Both assessments and tests provide actionable information about students’ abilities, feedback on teaching practices, and evidence of course effectiveness. Assessments can drive learning and create opportunities for learners as well. This keywords article tackles foundational concepts in language assessment and provides readers with practical considerations to enhance their assessment practices.

Developing A Classroom Assessment System in Science: Centering Educators' And Multilingual Students' Voices

Keira Ballantyne, Center for Applied Linguistics, Washington, D.C., USA

Amy Simpson, Center for Applied Linguistics, Washington, D.C., USA

Brittany York, Center for Applied Linguistics, Washington, D.C., USA

Ivanna Mann Thrower Anderson, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (Retired August 2025)

The Multilingual Multimodal Science Inventory (M2-Si) is a classroom assessment designed to showcase what students know and can do in science, not merely what students know and can do in science in English. In collaboration with educator-researchers (E-Rs), our research team created and piloted 16 M2-Si activities. Our research shows that students and educators can engage multilingually and multimodally in ways which lead educators to uncover multilingual students’ understandings and to adjust instruction accordingly.

Teacher Confidence in Context: Self-Efficacy Shifts In A Short International TESOL Practicum

Grant Eckstein, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Vashti Wai Yu Lee, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Mark Tanner, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Rachel Bowden, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Lauren Smith, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Addison Fisher, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Emma Todd, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Lara Zanotti, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Emmalee Couch, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

WenXuan Wan, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Jo Ya Hsu, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

In short-duration teaching practica, confidence can rise or fluctuate depending on what happens in the classroom. Drawing on teachers’ reflective writing and conversations from a six-week international TESOL practicum in Thailand, this article examines how novice and experienced teachers described changes in self-efficacy in relation to student engagement, classroom activities, co-teaching, and course-supported pedagogy. We conclude with concrete design recommendations for structuring practica that better support confidence development across experience levels.

Incorporating Place-Based Pedagogy Into Mainstream Academic English Writing Instruction: A Bangladesh Case

Tania Rahman, North South University, Dhaka, Bangladesh 

Can place-based pedagogy transform mainstream English writing instruction in higher education in the Global South? This study explores how an EAP writing assignment on responsible tourism in Indigenous localities in Bangladesh helps students reflect on biodiversity, cultural respect, and ethical travel, revealing how real and virtual experiences shape Generation Z learners’ intercultural awareness and environmental responsibility.

Teaching Pragmatic Competence in ESL: A Three-Stage Classroom Model

Zhi Ma, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom 

Have you ever corrected a student’s grammar yet felt the message still came across as too blunt, unclear, or culturally inappropriate? This pedagogical feature article presents a classroom-based framework for integrating pragmatics instruction into everyday TESOL teaching. Through short classroom examples, guided interpretation, and revised responses, it shows how teachers can help learners notice hidden meaning, interpret social cues, and select language appropriate to the situation. The article’s contribution is therefore not to propose a new theory of pragmatics, but to offer a teachable classroom routine that helps teachers translate pragmatic concepts into short, repeatable pedagogical decisions.

GenAI As A Co-Designer In Game-Informed Language Tasks

Qianhui Sun, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Liping Liu, Lingnan Normal University, Guangdong, China

How can generative AI support teachers in designing engaging language learning tasks? This article explores how GenAI can act as a pedagogical co-designer, helping teachers create game-informed tasks that enhance learner engagement while maintaining instructional control.

Critical Generative Artificial Intelligence-Assisted Language Education Bridge-Building: A Review of Researching Generative AI in Applied Linguistics

Zhiwen Peng, Independent Researcher, Zhuhai, Guangdong, China

After the release of the first Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tool (i.e., ChatGPT) in November 2022, the risks and pitfalls of applying GenAI tools to language education were recognized. This recognition calls for relevant empirical studies. Chapelle et al.’s (2025) Researching Generative AI in Applied Linguistics is one of the exemplars to respond to this need; it is also a potential guide to critical GenAI use in language education through the lens of applied linguistics.

Applied Linguistics Interest Section (ALIS)