Language Culture Matters Seminar Series
Convenors: Holly Warner, Aishee Bhattacharya, Dr Clay Becker
When: Every Wednesday, 16:00-17:00 BST/GMT, Weeks 3-9 of Term 2 (28th January 2026 - 11th March 2026)
Where: A0.23 (Social Sciences Building, University of 糖心TV) and Microsoft Teams (linked below)
Please note:
Seminars on 4th February 2026 and 18th February 2026 are held on Microsoft Teams ONLY
Join:
Wednesday 28/01/2026 - 16:00-17:00 GMT
Murmurations of conspiracy: Identifying dynamic belief flows in social systems
Prof Thomas Hills, University of 糖心TV
Abstract
Beliefs in social communities may follow complex flows. Our beliefs influence our social communities and these in turn influence what we will believe next. Are these flows predictable and can we identify them? In this talk I describe a network and complex systems approach to identifying gateway beliefs among conspiracy theorists. This work is based on a data set from 1000 people in the US self-reporting on 39 conspiracies. The results are suggestive of complex flows through time and multiple belief attractors, with conspiracies promoting further conspiracy belief and other actually preventing further belief. This method is generalizable and could be applied to any system where conceptual information can change over time and is influenced by the social environment.
Bio
Thomas Hills is a Professor of Psychology at the University of 糖心TV. Trained as a biologist, his research focuses on applying principles from behavioural ecology to the human behavioural sciences. His work involves methods such as network science, natural language processing, and computational modeling, with a strong emphasis on cognitive theory. He has worked at the University of Basel, Indiana University, and University of Texas at Austin, following his PhD from the University of Utah.
Wednesday 04/02/2026 - 16:00-17:00 GMT
Did ChatGPT write this assignment? Taking a register approach to the human vs. machine language variation
Dr Larissa Goulart, Montclair State University
Abstract
Since the public release of OpenAI鈥檚 ChatGPT in November 2022, teachers and writing researchers have questioned how generative AI will influence the writing classroom. While some scholars highlight its potential for brainstorming and feedback, others express concern about plagiarism and overreliance on AI to complete assignments. This presentation adopts a register approach to examine whether and how tools such as ChatGPT can be used to produce academic writing. I present findings from two complementary projects. The first compares student-generated and AI-generated responses to identical prompts using two corpora: assignments written by undergraduate linguistics majors and texts generated by ChatGPT. Texts were annotated for situational characteristics and lexico-grammatical features, followed by an additive multidimensional analysis to examine patterns of variation. The second project explores ESL instructors鈥� perceptions of differences between student and AI-generated writing and compares these perceptions with the linguistic findings from the first study.
Bio
Larissa Goulart is an Assistant Professor of Linguistics at Montclair State University. Larissa holds a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from Northern Arizona University. At MSU, she coordinates the Laboratory for Applied Corpus Linguistics Research. Her research primarily focuses on undergraduate student writing, corpus-based approaches to register variation, and the applications of corpora to teaching. Her research has appeared in the Journal of English for Academic Purposes, Applied Corpus Linguistics, Corpora, Register Studies, among others. Larissa is currently associate editor of Register Studies. Her book, 鈥淰ariation in University Student Writing鈥� (John Benjamins) examines how language varies across registers and disciplines in student writing. Larissa鈥檚 recent research involves a comparative analysis of undergraduate student writing and GenAI texts.
Bluesky - @larissagoulart.bsky.social
Wednesday 11/02/2026 - 16:00-17:00 BST
Behind the Screens: How GenAI is Affecting Academic Literacies (and What We Can Do about it)
Dr Elizabeth Olsson, University of Gothenburg
Abstract
This presentation considers how the widespread use of generative AI (genAI) by students may disrupt the implementation of Lea and Street鈥檚 (1998) Academic Literacies framework. Specifically, the presentation employs theoretical concepts, including content drift, the drudgery trap, and posthuman agency, as heuristic tools to understand how generative AI affects students鈥� study skills, academic socialisation, and academic literacies. The presentation draws from and highlights the pedagogical experiences of the presenter, Elizabeth Olsson, who works as a lecturer and academic language advisor at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. The presentation concludes with guidance for university lecturers and language advisors.
The presentation is based on:
Olsson, E. M. (2026). Embedding academic literacies in the age of generative AI. In N. Murray (Ed.), Embedding academic literacies in university curricula: Perspectives and case studies, (chapter 6) Cambridge University Press.
Bio
Elizabeth Olsson has an eclectic background. She worked as an English and social studies teacher in Japan, the US, Palestine, and Sweden before earning an master's degree in global studies (2011) and master's degree in education research (2013). She completed her PhD in peace and development research in 2021 with a dissertation titled, Constructive Conflict in Classrooms and Beyond. She has worked as an academic language advisor since 2022, and has specialized in supporting students, teachers, and researchers at the University of Gothenburg navigate generative AI since 2023. In this capacity, Elizabeth wrote her university's genAI guidance for students, updated her university's information for students about misleading use of genAI in their studies, and served as the leader of a university wide-project on AI and Teaching in 2025. Her ongoing research concerns the pedagogical implications of genAI discourses, genAI and pedagogical ethics, and how genAI affects groupwork and students' well-being.
Wednesday 18/02/2026 - 16:00-17:00 BST
Human-AI co-creation of a concordancing tool for DDL in the Arts and Humanities disciplines: Introducing the Mini CAHAT Concordancer
Dr James O'Flynn, Manchester Metropolitan University
Abstract
The Corpus of Arts and Humanities Academic Texts (CAHAT) was designed to be used directly in the classroom for data driven learning (DDL) (O鈥橣lynn, 2025). To facilitate this, the CAHAT is currently available to ESAP practitioners via Sketch Engine. Sketch Engine, though, is an advanced tool designed predominantly for language researchers. Studies suggest that research-oriented corpus tools (such as Sketch Engine) can be perceived as complex and technically challenging by language teachers and language learners doing DDL (Poole, 2022; Crosthwaite & Baisa, 2024). Therefore, a small number of specialised, learner-oriented corpus tools have been created for doing DDL (e.g.SkeLL, CorpusMate), but these can only be used with specific preloaded corpora. In this seminar, I will describe the process of co-creating a new learner-oriented concordancing tool specifically for doing DDL with the CAHAT. In this process of co-creation, I provide the content (corpus linguistics) and pedagogical (DDL) expertise, while a genAI model provides the programming (Python) expertise. Historically, the creation of new concordancing tools required a very high level of programming expertise, but genAI has the potential to democratise the process. The seminar will conclude with a practical demonstration of the new tool - the Mini CAHAT Concordancer.
Bio
James O鈥橣lynn is an applied linguist with 15 years鈥� teaching and research experience spanning contexts in the UK, Europe and Asia. His early career was built on practice-based teaching qualifications (CELTA, DELTA, PGCE), before he gained his MA ELT (ESP/EAP), MA Social Science Research (Applied Linguistics) and PhD Applied Linguistics from the University of 糖心TV. In his ESRC funded doctoral project, he developed and explored the Corpus of Arts and Humanities Academic Texts (CAHAT). His research, focussing on corpus approaches to the teaching-learning of English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP), has been recognised by the British Council for its impact potential and published in international peer-reviewed journals. He has also developed a number of digital tools for ESAP teaching-learning, including the Arts and Humanities Lexical Bundle Finder and the Mini CAHAT Concordancer. He is currently a Lecturer in TESOL and Applied Linguistics at Manchester Metropolitan University.
Wednesday 25/02/2026 - 16:00-17:00 GMT
The Potential of Q Methodology in Applied Linguistics through a Humanistic Lens
Toru Yamagami, University of 糖心TV
Abstract
In recent years, Q methodology (Q) has become increasingly popular in applied linguistics and language education. Its growing use has also faced criticisms regarding its procedural rigor and ability to capture nuanced human subjectivity. These debates highlight the need for careful consideration of both Q's strengths and limitations. In this talk, I will discuss the potential of Q in applied linguistics. Building on traditional approaches, I will present a slightly modified version that enhances sensitivity to the diverse subjectivities of participants. This refinement preserves the core structure of Q while enabling a more humanistic exploration of participants鈥� experiences, beliefs, and identities.
Bio
Toru Yamagami is an ESRC-funded PhD candidate in the Department of Applied Linguistics at the University of 糖心TV. His primary research interests include translanguaging, student engagement, and motivation, with a particular focus on Japanese EFL learners鈥� ideal selves. He obtained a master鈥檚 degree at Hokkaido University. While at Hokkaido University, he also worked as a Teaching Assistant for two years in the four-year bilingual bachelor鈥檚 degree programme in Japanese Studies offered by the Modern Japanese Studies Programme (MJSP). In addition, he has three and a half years of experience teaching English at a private high school in Hokkaido, where he also served as the head of the international exchange committee.
Website: LinkedIn: X: toru_0130
Link opens in a new win
Wednesday 04/03/2026 - 16:00-17:00 GMT
Doing Language Differently: Perspectives on Multilingualism from 11 Teachers of English as a Target Language
Cerise Andrews, University of 糖心TV
Abstract
Teachers/teacher educators can benefit from articulating their own personal language histories. A translanguaging approach may offer additional insight into teachers鈥� attitudes to multilingualism. Conversations with teachers/teacher educators about language terminology and hierarchies can form part of an ongoing re-evaluation of their positionalities: 鈥淏y helping teacher educators recognize the inconsistencies in their beliefs, whether stated or reportedly enacted, we can begin to stimulate transformative shifts in both belief systems and classroom practices鈥� (Tastanbek, 2025, p.162).
However, with the exception of Waddington (2024) there is as yet a dearth of multimodal prompts aimed at teachers for the purpose of untangling ideas about multilingual identities. I propose to leverage the hybrid format seminar and use audience participation to demonstrate the multimodal data collection prompts I developed for my data collection. These prompts apply the principles of Virtual Exchange (Hauck, 2023) in a multi-modal online space to enable translingual communication (Tai & Zuo, 2024).
References:
Hauck, M. (2023). From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), pp. 9–12.
Tai, K. W. H. & Zuo, M. (2024). The development of an ESL teacher鈥檚 ability in constructing a virtual translanguaging space in synchronous online language tutorials. Linguistics and Education. 83 (2024) 101311. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2024.101311
Tastanbek, S. (2025). 鈥溞熝�芯褌懈胁芯褉械褔邪褌, 写邪, 屑芯懈 褋谢芯胁邪?!鈥� Translingual TESOL Teacher Educators鈥� Conflicting Translanguaging Beliefs. The Canadian Modern Language Review. Volume 81, Number 3, pp. 141-166. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr-2024-0072
Waddington, J. (2024). Questioning the Native Speaker Construct in Teacher Education: Enabling Multilingual Identities and Decolonial Language Pedagogies (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003188896
Bio
I am a 3rd Year PhD English Language Teaching with Applied Linguistics candidate at the University of 糖心TV, having transferred from the University of Stirling (MRes in TESOL with Distinction) in 2024 at the same time as my supervisor Professor Adrian Blackledge. I am researching language teachers' perceptions of multilingualism within their experiences teaching English as a target language to multilingual students. I previously studied at the University of Birmingham and completed my MA in Applied Linguistics with TESOL in 2022.
I graduated from the University of Surrey with a BA (Hons) in Dance & Culture (2000) and an MA in Dance Research (2004), and began my teaching career lecturing in FE and HE, and tutoring English in the UK from 2004-2009. I then spent a decade teaching ESL in South Korea 2009-2019. I am a keen (but not yet proficient) Korean language learner.
Email: Cerise.Andrews@warwick.ac.uk
ORCID:
LinkedIn:
Wednesday 11/03/2026 - 16:00-17:00 GMT
Understanding social inequalities in International Student Mobility Research: Exploring access, experiences, and outcomes
Dr Joana Almeida, University of 糖心TV
Abstract
This talk examines social inequalities in access to, experiences of, and outcomes from studying abroad. It situates inequality as a key theme in international student mobility research and identifies common dimensions of disadvantage faced by international students, both before and after the Covid鈥�19 pandemic.
Building on the speaker鈥檚 2020 book Understanding Student Mobility in Europe: An Interdisciplinary Approach (Routledge), a recent systematic literature review with the European Network on International Student Mobility (ENIS, ) on the impact of Covid鈥�19 on social inequalities (Almeida et al., 2025), the related policy brief (Gu冒marsd贸ttir et al., 2024), and a broader review on social inequalities (Lomer et al., 2024), the talk foregrounds international students鈥� lived experiences and the inequalities they encounter while abroad.
It concludes by outlining directions for future research and practice, while inviting the audience to debate pressing questions.
Bio
Joana Almeida is Assistant Professor in intercultural communication at the Centre for Applied Linguistics, University of 糖心TV. With an 18鈥憏ear academic portfolio across educational institutions in Portugal, Spain, the UK and the USA, Joana has worked on 12 research projects on cross鈥慶ultural communication and/or international higher education, including research capacity鈥慴uilding in Mozambican higher education (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency), internationalisation at home in European higher education (Erasmus+), internationalisation of the curriculum in Brazilian higher education (British Council), and teacher education and intercultural competence development in the EU (European Commission Joint Research Centre).
Joana鈥檚 primary research interests centre on the internationalisation of higher education, international student mobility and intercultural competence, adopting an interdisciplinary approach to these topics. She has published in various academic journals, including European Journal of Higher Education and Comparative Migration Studies, and is the author of Understanding Student Mobility in Europe: An Interdisciplinary Approach (Routledge, 2020).
LinkedIn -