JALT Talk Newsletter

Hello, and welcome to another monthly edition of JALT Talk, the announcements newsletter of the Japan Association for Language Teaching.

JALT2023 International Conference News

Conference Interactive Schedule now online

Our web people have been working hard on the conference interactive schedule. It's not completely finished -- the Friday TnD and PD workshops aren't included yet -- but everything from Saturday to Monday is included.

Check it out: https://jalt.org/conference/jalt2023/schedule

This interactive schedule is searchable by speaker name, and you can also filter presentations by day, teaching context, and content area. Furthermore, you can see all of the presentations that will be available only online, as well as the ones that will be hybrid (in person and available online).

Watch interviews with our Plenary, Featured and Invited Speakers

Plenary Speaker Gary Barkhuizen
https://youtu.be/0oEE1Ppfbgg
Plenary Speaker Kathleen Kampa
https://youtu.be/m8SiXFWss64
Plenary Speaker Judy Noguchi
https://youtu.be/qA25n4die8c
Featured Speaker Marcos Benevides
https://youtu.be/cXp9Rr1RO5o
Featured Speaker Agnes Bodis
https://youtu.be/V7elcmz-Wm8
Featured Speaker Shannon Sauro
https://youtu.be/IHpqZboJwBA
Melodie Cook, the Kevin Cleary Invited Speaker
https://youtu.be/dpzfAVCE87I
Septina Nur Iswanti (Nina), the JALT2023 Bill Balsamo Asian Scholar
https://youtu.be/6Q9vhUh19_s

Watch preview videos of Friday workshops

JALT2023 kicks off on Friday, November 24th with twenty (20) workshops on Technology in Teaching (TnT) and Professional Development (PD). The TnT and PD workshops will be held between 1:00 - 6:30 PM. Get a sneak peek by watching some workshop video previews here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpP8yzHmmyNGITi5R60L2L4IppDzQYef5 (Be sure to like and subscribe!)

See https://jalt.org/conference/jalt2023/tnt-pd-workshops for Friday workshop schedule details.

Get JALT2023 merchandise (shirts, hoodies, mugs!)

Show up to JALT2023 in an official conference sweatshirt, t-shirt, hoodie, or hat! We've created a JALT shop on Japan's high-quality print-on-demand company, Suzuri. Visit https://suzuri.jp/JALT to browse. Clothing item pages have size charts in centimeters, so you can get the right fit, and most clothing items have a number of other colors to choose from. The whole process of printing and shipping takes a week, maybe more depending on the item.

Reminder: JALT2023 Registration Fees and Early-bird discount deadline

Conference fee information for JALT2023 is now available. Preregistration (early-bird discount) rates are available until October 31st. Full registration information and processing now available.

Details: https://jalt.org/conference/jalt2023/registration-fees

Reminder: JALT2023 Hotel Registration through JTB and JALT

As in past years, JALT is teaming up with JTB ("Japan Travel Bureau", 株式会社ジェイティービー) to offer hotels for the weekend. With the Tsukuba marathon taking place the same weekend as JALT2023, and considering the number of hotels in Tsukuba that closed due to the COVID shutdown, we strongly encourage all attendees to book on their own or through the JALT website as soon as possible: https://jalt.org/conference/jalt2023/accommodation

If you're booking on your own, one recommendation from locals is to check out Tsuchiura. From Tsuchiura, you can take a bus to Tsukuba Conference Center in 23 to 30 minutes. You can reach Tsuchiura from Shinagawa, Tokyo, and Ueno on the JR Joban-Line.

Reminder: JALT is looking for interns for the 2023 International Conference.

If you've attended one of our Annual International Conferences before, you'll remember seeing these volunteers in pink t-shirts helping with registration, the cloak room, presentation timing, and more. If you know university or graduate school students with English skills that they'd like to put to use, please refer them to our "Call for interns" page. Some universities actually fund teachers to bring a group of interns each year as part of a work internship experience.

Take a look at what our interns have been doing at past conferences by browsing this photo album of Pink Shirt interns over the years. We also have a short recruiting video on YouTube (with Japanese subtitles).

Each year, JALT awards up to three grants for a maximum of 100,000 yen each for research on language teaching in Japan. Only JALT members who have no outside funding sources to conduct research are eligible to apply. The goal of the grants is to support language teachers in their professional development and to encourage teachers to engage in classroom-based research. Grant funds are transferred to before the start of the following academic year during which they conduct their studies, provide quarterly reports, and receive guidance from the committee. Following the completion of the research, grant recipients are invited to give presentations on their projects at the JALT national conference. The deadline for proposals for projects starting in the 2024 school year is November 12, 2023.

Exciting times ahead! The JALTCALL2024 conference team is diligently piecing together details for an enlightening event that promises to captivate all attendees. We are thrilled to announce our return to the heart of Japan - the scenic Nagoya Dome-mae campus at Meijo University in Nagoya, Japan.

This year, we shine a spotlight on the transformative realm of Artificial Intelligence, offering a platform for innovation, dialogue, and discovery.

Details will be unveiled in the weeks to come. So, stay tuned! And for those eager to contribute, start crafting your proposals.

The JALTCALL Conference is the annual conference of JALT's Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) SIG.

This is a quick reminder about the LD SIG 30th Anniversary Conference, "LD30: Learning for Change and Action, Making a Difference for the Future 変化と行動のための学習、未来への変化をもたらす" that will be held next month, October 21 to 22nd, at Gakushuin University in Tokyo.

There will be a diverse range of plenary speakers presenting on the following topics: Phil Benson (Learner Autonomy and Language Teaching Development), Stacey Vye & Chiyuki Yanase (Teacher Well-Being), and Taichi Watanabe (SDGs and Becoming a Social Entrepreneur), please click here for a poster!

As well as this, there will be over 40 interactive sessions that each focus on a particular learner development, and/or global issues education, and/or teacher development question, puzzle, or conundrum.

To find out more about the conference, please see the LD30 website: https://ld30.edzil.la/.

Call for proposals now open for the JALT Teacher Development SIG's Teacher Journeys 2023 Online Conference

Since 2011, Teacher Journeys has evolved in many ways: from a face-to-face annual conference to a collection of curated videos online, and to a synchronous online conference. Yet, one feature has remained constant: it is one of the best venues for teachers across Japan and beyond to share reflections on their classroom situations.

This year, Teacher Journeys aims to facilitate a continuous dialogue between presenters and viewers culminating in a synchronous online conference on December 16th, 2023. Whether you want to share a well-thought educational insight with your colleagues or engage in exploratory conversation with your peers, Teacher Journeys is the place to be.

The Tohoku ELT Expo is sponsored by JALT Sendai and ETJ. It is a one day mini-conference offering quality presentations and materials displays for language teachers in any context: college, junior and senior high, elementary, kindergarten and private language school. Presentation slots are available, so please jump in and share your teaching ideas or research at any level, children to adult. Sessions are generally 45 minutes (30-40 minute presentation with 5-15 minutes for questions & discussion). Submit your proposals by midnight October 23.

October Grand Forum being hosted by Gifu, Nagoya and Toyohashi Chapters (October 8)

There are several poster presentations covering university and school setting research. We also have demonstrations of some digital learning tools from our sponsors.

Tokyo Association of International Preschools Conference registration due by October 6 (conference: October 14th)

TAIP is the Tokyo Association of International Preschools, an affiliate of JALT. For more information about this conference, please see https://www.tokyopreschools.org/events

Call for presentations open for the International Hybrid Conference on Diversity and Inclusivity in English Language Education (DIELE)

The International Hybrid DIELE Conference is an opportunity to discuss key issues and current trends in promoting inclusive education in classrooms where English is taught as a foreign, second, additional or international language. A strength of this event is that the conference brings together a diverse international audience comprising academics, teacher educators, teacher-researchers, researchers, policy makers and materials developers, all who are keen on promoting and utilising theory, research and practice to develop English language education that is more attractive, effective, inclusive and innovative. This conference is hosted by the University of York, UK; Monash University, Australia; and Soka University, Japan

Post conference publications: Optional post conference publication (peer-reviewed) opportunities will be available for a Special Issue by the Environment and Social Psychology (ESP) journal or an edited volume to be published by Multilingual Matters.

JALT has published The Language Teacher - Issue 47.5; September 2023. The Language Teacher, or TLT as we usually refer to it, is JALT's bimonthly publication. The September issue of TLT contains all the information you need to prepare for this year's conference, including articles by the main speakers, workshop information, and accommodation and travel information. https://jalt-publications.org/tlt/issues/2023-09_47.5

JALT's Mind, Brain, and Education SIG has released Bias: How Bias Works in the Brain and What it Means for Language Teachers: Bulletin of the JALT Mind, Brain, and Education SIG Volume 9, Issue 8 Aug 1, 2023. This issue is about bias, the brain's natural way of interpreting the world, how bias works, and how we can refine it. 今月号は脳の性癖とも言える「偏り」についてです。これにより私たちは世界を理解しているのですが、その仕組みはどうなっているのでしょうか。どうすれば磨きをかけることができるでしょうか。これらを解き明かしていきます。 https://www.mindbrained.org

JALT's Materials Writers SIG has released Between the Keys: 31.3. Summer edition of the magazine with several articles and essays. いくつかの記事とエッセイを掲載した雑誌の夏号。 https://materialswriters.org/images/btk/31_3.pdf

JALT's Mind, Brain, and Education SIG has released MindBrainEd Think Tank: Training Language Teachers as a Way to Build Expertise: Bulletin of the JALT Mind, Brain, and Education SIG Volume 9, Issue 9 Sept 1, 2023. This issue focuses on the journey from novice to expert teacher. 今月号は新米教員からベテランへの歩みについての特集です。 https://www.mindbrained.org

JALT's Teaching Younger Learners SIG has released The School House Vol. 31 Issue 1, containing ideas for lessons and a write up from the PanSIG Conference. https://jalt-tyl.net/publications/

Reminder: JALT Global Englishes SIG Journal: Call for Papers Due 1st April 2024

The Global Englishes SIG would like to announce the call for papers for the first publication of its journal. Submissions are accepted in English and Japanese. The deadline is 1st April 2024. Please see the website for the submission guidelines.

IATEFL is the International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language. IATEFL's 57th International Conference & Exhibition will be held April 16-19, 2024. For more information about this conference, see https://www.iatefl.org/conference/home.

Reminder: Call for presentations for the 28th NELTA International Conference 2024 due November 3rd, 2023

NELTA is the Nepal English Language Teacher's Association. NELTA and JALT are affiliates. For more information about this conference, please see https://www.nelta.org.np/conference/28.

05 October 2023, 7:30pm to 9:00pm
OLE SIG & LiLT SIG Joint online event: Transmedia Storytelling in the Foreign Language Classroom: Multiple perspectives on differentiation and cooperative learning
JALT Other Language Educators SIG and Literature in Language Teaching SIG

07 October 2023, 12:30pm
Developing a Strong Academic Voice
JALT Yokohama Chapter

08 October 2023, 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Promoting Critical Multiculturalism in the Japanese EFL Classroom: Conceptualization, Design, and Delivery
JALT Osaka Chapter

15 October 2023, 2:00pm to 4:00pm
[F2F] Having a good laugh: the merits of using cartoons as teaching material in university English classes
JALT Matsuyama Chapter

21 October 2023, 2:00pm
The effectiveness of integrating ICT and practical learning methods in technical college students' learning motivation
JALT Akita Chapter

21 October 2023, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Kitakyushu JALT Open Meeting
JALT Kitakyushu Chapter

21-22 October 2023
LD SIG 30th Anniversary Conference: Learning for Change and Action, Making a Difference for the Future
https://ld30.edzil.la
JALT Learner Development SIG

28 October 2023, 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Joint Event with DEI: How to Deal with Microaggressions
JALT Kobe Chapter and the JALT Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Committee

29 October 2023, 2:00pm
[online] Thinking about Critical Thinking
JALT Shizuoka Chapter

04 November 2023, 9:00am to 5:00pm
2023 JALT Study Abroad SIG Conference
The JALT Study Abroad SIG are delighted to welcome you back to our first face-to-face conference since before the pandemic. This year, our theme is Changing Trends in Study Abroad - The Past, The Present, And The Future. https://www.sa-sig.org/conference.html

04 November 2023, 2:00pm
JALT International Conference Practice Presentations
JALT Shizuoka Chapter

24-27 November 2023
49th Annual International Conference on Language Teaching and Learning
https://jalt.org/conference
JALT

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