JALT Talk Newsletter

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

JALT Members: Vote in the 2025 June Ordinary General Meeting

The 2025 June Ordinary General Meeting information and voting ballot link have been sent to your JALT registered email account. The email is titled

If you have not received this email, please contact membership for the information and links: membership@jalt.org

Please take a few minutes of your time to vote on these important issues. We need our members to vote in order to comply with the regulations of an NPO in Japan.

JALT.org website progress

Thank you for patiently waiting while our jalt.org website and database are being updated and renewed. Currently most of the work is being handled away from the front end of the site, so you may not see any changes. However, our TASC team will be taking over the running of the site soon, and we will start to see links active, new information included, and improvements to the site appearance. We will keep you updated as changes happen

JALT International Conference News

JALT2025 Basic details:

Title: 51st Annual International Conference on Language Teaching and Learning & Educational Materials Exhibition
When: Friday, October 31 - Sunday, November 2, 2025
Where: National Youth Olympic Center, Yoyogi, Tokyo
Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/wR973syaJ2PSivbEA
Theme:
LanguageS: Learning, Teaching, Assessing
— JALT 50 Years —
Challenges and Perspectives
Conference website: https://events.jalt.org/event/37/

Childcare

Childcare will be available during the conference. Details will be announced soon. We hope that this encourages parents and caregivers to apply to give a presentation or poster at JALT2025.

JALT2025 t-shirts, hoodies, bags and more!

JALT2025 conference goods have been added to our online shop! T-shirts, hoodies, keychains, hats, stickers, more! Show up in style.

See our collections of JALT2025 goods here: https://suzuri.jp/JALT/omoide
See everything (with newest on top), including JALT goods and past conference goods: https://suzuri.jp/JALT/products

Reminder about TNT (Technology in Teaching) and PD (Professional Development) workshops

Instead of holding TNT and PD workshops on the Friday of the conference, these workshops will move online, on a different date in the summer (details TBA). JALT2025 will still be a full 3-day conference; the difference is that we will start with a full day of presentations on Friday, October 31, and finish on Sunday, November 2.

Job listings

Complimentary TESOL Memberships for Seven JALT Members (application deadline June 15)

JALT is an Affiliate Member of TESOL International Association. As an Affiliate Member, we can award 7 complimentary TESOL International Association memberships to JALT members. To be considered for one of these memberships, you must be:

PanSIG2025 Conference News

PanSIG is an annual conference organized by many of the Special Interest Groups (SIGs) of JALT. Information about past PanSIG conferences (including photos, conference handbooks, etc.) can be found in the PanSIG Archive.

Help Shape the Future of PanSIG -- Join the Journal Team!

The PanSIG Journal is growing fast and we’re looking for passionate, detail-oriented, and creative minds to join our editorial team. Whether you're a seasoned academic or just looking to get more involved, there’s a place for you!

We're currently recruiting for:

Expert Reviewers: Evaluate articles in your field of expertise
Desk Screening Editors: Ensure APA style and journal formatting
Peer-Review Editors: Assign reviewers and assess reviews
Copy Editors: Polish language and catch those final typos
Layout Editors: Format articles and bring each issue to life
PR Chairs: Spread the word on our website and social media

💡 Your voice matters. Your experience matters. And yes, YOU matter.

Join us and be part of a vibrant academic community shaping research in language education and beyond.

👉 Interested? Apply here: https://forms.gle/a1Wsz39sNVPk8q9aA or contact us: journal@pansig.org

For more information about us, please visit the PanSIG Journal website: https://pansig.org/pansig-journal

PanSIG 2025 was a great success!

The JALT PanSIG 2025 Conference was held May 16-18, 2025 at Kanda University of International Studies in Mihama Ward, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture. We started Friday evening with workshops and a social event (waching a professional Japanese baseball game at the nearby stadium). This great weekend of professional developoment opportunities and networking opporunities attracted nearly 600 attendees (a full report will be coming out soon). Relive the memories through our collection of conference photos.

Call for Papers 2025: Volume 11

All vetted presentations at PanSIG 2025 are invited to submit a paper based on their presentation for publication in the PanSIG Journal. All full article submissions must be made via Indico, the conference submission system.

In the same way that presentations were vetted prior to the conference, journal papers from the conference will also be subject to peer review. Since 2020, we have adopted a policy of peer review, where each submitting author will review one PanSIG Journal submissions. Note that publishing in the PanSIG Journal qualifies as a refereed publication.

The submission deadline is July 15. Details: https://pansig.org/journal-cfp

The JALT Accessibility in Language Learning SIG LIFT Scholarship

The ALL LIFT Scholarship will be open for applications from Friday, 1st August 2025. ALL (Accessibility in Language Learning) SIG members are eligible to apply for the second cohort.

Call for Presentations due June 15th for Critical Thinking in the Classroom 2025 (August 2 in Osaka)

The JALT Critical Thinking SIG is accepting proposals for presentations to be given at Critical Thinking in the Classroom 2025 (CTC 2025), a conference to be held on August 2nd, 2025, from 9:30 to 16:15 on the second floor of Building 3 on the Neyagawa Campus of Setsunan University located in Osaka Prefecture. This is the annual summer conference hosted by the JALT Critical Thinking SIG.

The aim of this conference is to provide an opportunity for researchers and educators to share their research, methods, approaches, materials, and activities for encouraging critical thinking and the use of higher order thinking skills in the language learning classroom. Presenters will receive a 45-minute slot (35 minutes for presenting and 10 minutes for Q&A). Areas of interest may include, but are not limited to, higher-order thinking skills, evidence-based thinking, problem solving, logical thinking, evaluating sources, thinking dispositions, viewpoint-taking, debate and argumentation, academic writing, and of course, critical thinking.

The 7th Extensive Reading World Congress (Sept 5-9, Sapporo)

JALT's Extensive Reading SIG and the ER Foundation are the proud sponsors of ERWC 7 in Sapporo, Hokkaido this summer, September 5-9. Check out our plenary speakers, see the full schedule of sessions, and buy your tickets at https://erwc7.edzil.la/. We hope to see you in Hokkaido!

Registration now open for the JALT Listening SIG Conference 2025 (June 28, Tokyo)

The next Listening SIG event will be the JALT Listening SIG Conference on Saturday 28th June. The JALT Listening SIG Conference has been organized together with the JALT Tokyo Chapter. The whole day event will showcase some of the latest listening research, teaching, and learning presentations from the field.

The conference is scheduled to run from 10am to 4pm with over ten presentations scheduled in two rooms for the entire day. This is our fourth SIG event and we will be a face-to-face event. There will be a social to wrap up the conference on Saturday 28th. We look forward to seeing you in Tokyo on Saturday 28th June!

Call for Poster Presentations on Teaching Practices (July 6, Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture)

Email your proposal of intent to present to Justin Llaneza Bailey (justinllaneza@hotmail.com). Proposal of intent should include your name, affiliation (if any), title of your presentation, and a brief (less than 100 words) description of your teaching practice, how it was used, what context, and any inspirations that led you to using the technique / approach.

Call for Presentations due July 25 for Yamagata JALT's 2nd Annual Mini-Conference (Saturday, September 20)

The Yamagata JALT Chapter welcomes submissions of Posters, Presentations, or Workshops in English or Japanese on various aspects of language learning and teaching. This year’s theme will focus on "Classroom Hints, Tips, and Learning from Mistakes," and the event will be held Saturday, September 20th, 2025.

Call for Online MyShare Activities due July 6th for the Performance in Education SIG Zoom My Activity Conference (July 12, 2025, online)

Recent JALT Publications

Upcoming JALT Events

14 June 2025, 1:00pm to 3:00pm
David Paul: Motivating low-level learners to communicate / Building up all students' ability to discuss a wide range of topics
Okayama Chapter
https://www.facebook.com/OkayamaJALT

14 June 2025, 2:00pm to 4:00pm
Inclusive Education: The Challenges of Educators with Disabilities in Japan インクルーシブ教育：日本における障害のある教育者の課題
Matsuyama Chapter
https://legacy.jalt.org/event/matsuyama/25-06-14

5 July 2025
An Intimate Afternoon of Content and Language Teaching in Tokushima
East Shikoku JALT and Literature in Language Teaching SIG
https://esjalt.org

Upcoming Conferences from JALT's International Partners

Reminder: Nominations for the 2025 JALT Awards

Do you know a JALT member who has made important contributions to our field? Be sure to nominate them for one of these awards brought to you by JALT's Awards and Recognition Committee! JALT has awards for teachers and researchers at various stages of their careers:

Any member is welcome to nominate another JALT member for an award--simply complete this form in English or Japanese by 23:59 on Monday, September 8, 2025.

That's all for this month. You can subscribe and / or access back issues here. Alternatively, if you'd rather not receive more information from JALT, you can unsubscribe here: https://hosted.jalt.org/membermail/unsubscribe-success.php?c=215