56th RELC International Conference

Equitable and Inclusive Language Education: New Paradigms, Pathways, and Possibilities

March 14, 2022 - March 16, 2022 SEAMEO RELC, Singapore

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The ever-changing demographics of learners and the continuous influx of new technologies have changed the language education architecture around the globe. Innovative learning ecosystems have evolved, creating new pathways and opportunities for learners. Today, as learning spaces become more complex with students of different cultural backgrounds, academic identities, and learning needs, language education systems need to adopt new policies, practices, and perspectives that cater to diversity and individual uniqueness. Language educators also need to navigate modern ways to help learners regardless of social background or divide in order to unleash hidden potential and ensure equivalent outcomes. When learners learn a language or languages in equitable and inclusive learning environments, they become empowered actors of social development, cohesion, and resilience.

This conference aims to bring together policy makers, classroom practitioners, and researchers to rethink and shape new paradigms, and explore alternative pathways and new possibilities in language education that nurture diversity, equity, and inclusion in various educational and training systems across Asia and beyond. It also aims to provide a platform for discussion on the timeless theme of equitable and inclusive language education in the post COVID-19 era when equitable access to home-based or remote learning and other challenges faced in providing an inclusive language education for all learners become pertinent areas of concern to be addressed.

The 56th RELC International Conference has the following aims:

  • To provide policy makers, education leaders, teachers, and researchers a platform to share innovative practices, ground-breaking researches, and modern perspectives on the significance and effects of equitable and inclusive language education in various contexts in the post COVID-19 era
  • To promote a high level intellectual discourse on diversity, inclusion, and equity in language and literacy education that will help leaders and classroom practitioners formulate informed decisions and actions
  • To develop new knowledge, skills, and inspirations in celebrating diversity and cultivating equity and inclusion in language classrooms
  • To share best practices in teaching and assessing diverse language learners in an equitable and inclusive classroom
  • To showcase innovative teaching materials and technological tools that promote equity and inclusivity in ESL/EFL classrooms
  • Equity and inclusion in multicultural language learning environments
  • Differentiation in ELT curriculum, instruction, and assessment in the post COVID-19 period
  • Asset-based language teaching and assessment
  • Learner autonomy, motivation, and grit in language learning
  • Bilingualism, multilingualism, and translingualism
  • Linguistic inclusivity in basic and higher education
  • Equitable and inclusive language testing and assessment
  • Social Emotional Learning in ELT
  • Emerging identities in language learning contexts
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / Deep Learning in ELT
  • Digital tools and multimodal literacy
  • Adult language education and lifelong learning pathways
  • Research trends, practices, and trajectories in inclusive and equitable language education
  • Programmes and developments in supporting success of English language learners
  • Inclusion and equity in teacher training and development
  • 21st century language teachers and their roles to promote Gen Z learning

Invited Speakers / Featured Speakers

Dr Ishikawa Tomokazu

Associate Professor, Department of Linguistics, Languages, and Cultures, Michigan State University (MSU)

Mr Roy Cross

Principal Consultant, English for Education Systems, British Council

Dr Fan Fang

Associate Professor, Shantou University, China

Dr David Gerlach

Professor of Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), Institution University of Wuppertal, Germany

Mrs Louise Gilbert

Senior Assessment Manager, Cambridge University Press & Assessment, United Kingdom

Dr Christoph A Hafner

Associate Professor, Department of English, City University of Hong Kong

Dr Tomokazu Ishikawa

Assistant Professor, Center for English as a Lingua Franca, Tamagawa University, Japan

Dr Sally Ann Jones

Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head (Programmes and Teaching), English Language and Literature Academic Group, National Institute of Education, NTU

Dr Hanan Khalifa

Head of Research and International Education, Cambridge Assessment

Dr Willy A Renandya

Principal Lecturer, English Language & Literature (ELL), National Institute of Education, NTU

Dr Corinne Seals

Senior Lecturer, Applied Linguistics, Victoria University of Wellington and Director, Translanguaging Aotearoa

Dr Supong Tangkiengsirisin

Associate professor and Director of the Language Institute Thammasat University, Thailand

Dr Ruanni Tupas

Lecturer, Applied Linguistics, University College London, Institute of Education

Dr Subhan Zein

Lecturer, Australian National University (ANU)

Dr Ishikawa Tomokazu

Associate Professor, Department of Linguistics, Languages, and Cultures, Michigan State University (MSU)

Tomokazu Ishikawa is Associate Professor of English and Intercultural Communication at Otaru University of Commerce, Hokkaido Higher Education and Research System, Japan. His forthcoming publications include ‘Global Englishes’ (Routledge, with W.Baker and J.Jenkins) and ‘Developing ELF Programmes for Language Teaching’ (De Gruyter, edited with P.McBride and A.Suzuki).

Mr Roy Cross

Principal Consultant, English for Education Systems, British Council

Roy works in the British Council’s English for Education Systems team. His preoccupations for much of his career have been a) what really makes networks for ELT professionals work for their members, and b) the relationship between trainer and trainee, teacher and student, and knower and novice.

Dr Fan Fang

Associate Professor, Shantou University, China

Dr Fan Fang is Associate Professor at Shantou University, China. His research interests include sociolinguistics and applied linguistics. His recent publications appear in journals including Asia Pacific Journal of Education, Asian Englishes, ELT Journal, English Today, Language, Culture and Curriculum, Language Teaching Research, Lingua, RELC Journal, System, and The Journal of Asia TEFL.

Dr David Gerlach

Professor of Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), Institution University of Wuppertal, Germany

Dr David Gerlach is a full professor at the University of Wuppertal (Germany). His research and teaching focus on professional development of language teachers, critical pedagogy, and inclusive language teaching. Lately, he has been involved in conceptualizing more critical perspectives for inclusive language teaching and language teacher education in Germany.

Mrs Louise Gilbert

Senior Assessment Manager, Cambridge University Press & Assessment, United Kingdom

Following a career teaching English, Louise Gilbert started work at Cambridge University Press and Assessment in 2007. Now a Senior Assessment Manager, she is involved in equity and inclusion in testing through her work on exam access arrangements and her role as Chair of the EDIB in Content Creation Group.

Dr Christoph A Hafner

Associate Professor, Department of English, City University of Hong Kong

Dr Christoph A Hafner is Associate Professor in the Department of English, City University of Hong Kong. He has published widely on English for specific purposes, digital literacies, and language learning and technology. His latest book is Understanding Digital Literacies: A Practical Introduction (2nd edition) (Routledge, 2021, co-authored with Rodney Jones).

Dr Tomokazu Ishikawa

Assistant Professor, Center for English as a Lingua Franca, Tamagawa University, Japan

Dr Tomokazu Ishikawa is an assistant professor at Tamagawa University’s Center for English as a Lingua Franca and a postdoctoral member at the University of Southampton’s Centre for Global Englishes. He is a co-author of Transcultural communication through Global Englishes: An advanced textbook for students (with Will Baker, Routledge, 2021).

Dr Sally Ann Jones

Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head (Programmes and Teaching), English Language and Literature Academic Group, National Institute of Education, NTU

Dr Sally Ann Jones is Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head (Programmes and Teaching) in the English Language and Literature Academic Group at the National Institute of Education, Singapore. She has taught in schools and in teacher education. Her research centres on language in education – as thinking and as culture.

Dr Hanan Khalifa

Head of Research and International Education, Cambridge Assessment

Dr Hanan Khalifa is an award winning and leading language testing expert Council of Europe CEFR expert who developed and validated national and international assessments, led the alignment of national curriculum and examinations to international standards, and presented and published extensively on these areas. Hanan has worked and consulted for ministries of education, examination boards and international development agencies.

Dr Willy A Renandya

Principal Lecturer, English Language & Literature (ELL), National Institute of Education, NTU

Dr Willy A Renandya is a language teacher educator with extensive teaching experience in Asia. He currently teaches applied linguistics courses at the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He is a frequent plenary speaker at ELT international conferences and has published extensively in the area of second language education. His publications include Language Teaching Methodology: An anthology of current practice (2002, Cambridge University Press), Student-centred cooperative learning (2019, Springer International), and a recently published book chapter Growing Our Research Impact (2020, Springer International). He maintains a large language teacher professional development forum called Teacher Voices: https://www.facebook.com/groups/teachervoices/

Dr Corinne Seals

Senior Lecturer, Applied Linguistics, Victoria University of Wellington and Director, Translanguaging Aotearoa

Dr. Corinne Seals is Senior Lecturer of Applied Linguistics at Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand), and she is the Director of Translanguaging Aotearoa. She has published 30+ articles and book chapters, and four books including recently Linguistic Landscapes Beyond the Language Classroom (2020, Bloomsbury), Translanguaging in Conjunction with Language Revitalization (2020, System), Embracing Multilingualism Across Educational Contexts (2019, VU Press), and Heritage Language Policies Around the World (2017, Routledge). Corinne’s research is focused on language and identity, and the role of translanguaging, especially for heritage language speakers. She also actively researches language policy and planning, linguistic landscapes, and forensic linguistics.

Dr Supong Tangkiengsirisin

Associate professor and Director of the Language Institute Thammasat University, Thailand

Dr Supong Tangkiengsirisin is an associate professor and the Director of the Language Institute Thammasat University, Thailand. His areas of interest include English written discourse, writing strategies, ESP, genre analysis, and second language writing instruction and research.

Dr Ruanni Tupas

Lecturer, Applied Linguistics, University College London, Institute of Education

Dr Ruanni Tupas is a Lecturer in Applied Linguistics at the University College London, Institute of Education. His areas of research are in language in education, Unequal Englishes, and language policy.

Dr Subhan Zein

Lecturer, Australian National University (ANU)

Subhan Zein, PhD teaches at Australian National University (ANU). He is the author of Language Policy in Superdiverse Indonesia, and he has also published two other monographs, 32 refereed articles and chapters, and six academic volumes. He has been awarded Australia’s 2021 Top Researcher in English Language and Literature.

Dr Yawen Han (21st Century English Education Media, China Daily)

Associate Professor, Applied Linguistics, School of Foreign Languages, Southeast University, Nanjing, China

Dr Takahiro Iwanaka (JACET)

Professor, Yamaguchi Prefectural University, Japan

Jeongyeon Kim (KATE)

Professor, School of Liberal Arts at UNIST, South Korea

Prof Joko Nurkamto (TEFLIN)

Professor, Department of English Language Education, Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Sebelas Maret University, Indonesia

Panhchaneath Sokheng (CamTESOL)

Acting Campus Manager, Australian Centre for Education, IDP Education Cambodia

Visal Sou (CamTESOL)

CamTESOL Conference Manager, IDP Education Cambodia

Dr Watcharapol Wiboolyasarin (ThaiTESOL)

Associate Professor, Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia, Mahidol University, Thailand

Dr Yawen Han (21st Century English Education Media, China Daily)

Associate Professor, Applied Linguistics, School of Foreign Languages, Southeast University, Nanjing, China

Yawen Han is an associate professor and the executive director of Research Center on Language Policy for Asia-Pacific Countries in the School of Foreign Languages at Southeast University. Much of his current work focuses on educational policy and practice for minority students and international students studying in universities of China.

Dr Takahiro Iwanaka (JACET)

Professor, Yamaguchi Prefectural University, Japan

Takahiro Iwanaka, Ph.D., is a professor at Yamaguchi Prefectural University, Japan. He has been interested in investigating the roles of output, noticing, and explicit syntagmatic knowledge in English language learning. He is also interested in how rewriting based on feedback contributes to the development of learners’ writing proficiency in English.

Jeongyeon Kim (KATE)

Professor, School of Liberal Arts at UNIST, South Korea

Jeongyeon Kim, Ph.D, is professor at School of Liberal Arts at UNIST, where she teaches courses on foreign language pragmatics. As an applied linguist, she conducts research on language and social interaction and language policy. Her recent research articles have been published in journals English for Specific Purposes and System.

Prof Joko Nurkamto (TEFLIN)

Professor, Department of English Language Education, Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Sebelas Maret University, Indonesia

JOKO NURKAMTO is a Professor of TESOL in the Department of English Language Education, the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education at Sebelas Maret University, Indonesia. He is currently the Head of the English Education Department of the Graduate Program at that University. His most recent publication is “Teachers’ beliefs and practices in teaching reading at Islamic secondary schools in Indonesia. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 10(3), 667-676. https://ejournal.upi.edu/index.php/IJAL/article/view/31753

Panhchaneath Sokheng (CamTESOL)

Acting Campus Manager, Australian Centre for Education, IDP Education Cambodia

She received her Master of TESOL from the University of Auckland, New Zealand and her current research interest lies in ELT management and organization development and teachers’ CPD.

Visal Sou (CamTESOL)

CamTESOL Conference Manager, IDP Education Cambodia

Visal SOU is a CamTESOL Conference Manager, IDP Education Cambodia. He also serves as a member of the Advisory Council for the National ELT Accreditation Scheme (NEAS), Australia. He received his MEd (Hon) from the University of Hong Kong in 2011, and his IDLTM from the University of Queensland late 2015. His current research interest lies in ELT management and organization development, teachers’ CPD, EdTech, innovation and design thinking.

Dr Watcharapol Wiboolyasarin (ThaiTESOL)

Associate Professor, Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia, Mahidol University, Thailand

Watcharapol Wiboolyasarin is associate professor of Thai at Mahidol University’s Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia (RILCA). He earned a PhD in educational technology and communications from Chulalongkorn University. His recent articles center on the integration of emerging technologies and second/foreign language teaching for non- and native Thai speakers.

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