Center Webinars
The CEDAR LRC offers a year-round (online) webinar series focused on contemporary best practices for language teaching and learning, with two webinars per semester. These webinars provide professional development opportunities for language educators and promote best practices for language education at the regional and national levels.
Past Webinars
- Beth Wassell, Ed.D. (Rowan University)
- "World Languages for All: Transforming Access and Equity in K-12 and Higher Education"
- Thursday, October 24th, 2024
- 12:00-1:00pm ET
- Language educators are uniquely poised to foster inclusive spaces and learning experiences that encourage students to think critically about issues related to identity, equity, justice, and action beyond the classroom walls. However, we must also consider systemic issues in language study. Who has access to language study, and how can we make changes in the field to include and support a broader range of learners? To this end, we will discuss issues of access and equity in K-12 and postsecondary language education and how we can take action to make language study more equitable and inclusive.
- Dr. Kongji Qin (New York University)
- "Translingual Caring and Translingual Aggression: (Re)Centering Criticality in Translanguaging Pedagogy for Equity and Justice in Language Education"
- Tuesday, March 26th, 2024
- 3:00-4:30pm ET
- In recent years, the study of translanguaging, which is loosely defined as a multilingual person’s use of all their languages for communication, has gained much popularity in language education. Studies on translanguaging pedagogy have largely focused on its affordances; however, research on its challenges remains limited. In addition, scholars have raised concerns that the research and practice of translanguaging pedagogy have ignored the principles of equity and justice that are central to the critical theorizing of translanguaging. In this webinar, Dr. Kongji Qin aims to address this gap by exploring what it means to (re)center criticality in translanguaging pedagogy for advancing equity and justice in language education.
- Dr. Lindsay Preseau (Iowa State University)
- "Divisive Concepts" in the World Language Classroom: Supporting LGBTQ+ Students"
- Tuesday, February 6th, 2024
- 3:30-5:00pm EST
- This webinar equips K-16 world language instructors to support the needs of LGBTQ+ students in the face of state and district legislation dictating how educators can address issues of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. Considering content areas such as non-binary pronouns and LGBTQ+ cultural content, instructors will learn evidence-based terminologies, best practices, and resources to support their students while adhering to such "divisive concepts" legislation.
- Dr. Crystal Marull (University of Florida)
- "The Dynamic Role of Data in Crafting Engaging Online Learning Experiences"
- Wednesday, November 8th, 2023
- 3:00-4:30pm EST
- This webinar demonstrates how real-time data analytics create immediate feedback loops, enabling instructors to tailor teaching methods and content delivery for maximum student engagement. We explore how data-driven decision-making enhances online course design, nurturing interactive and personalized learning experiences.
- Dr. Kara Moranski and Dr. Juan Godoy-Peñas
- "From placement to graduation: Accessible language program metrics"
- Tuesday, October 10th, 2023
- 3:00-4:30pm EST
- This hands-on webinar will empower postsecondary language educators to assess their language programs’ needs by using tools such as the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and drop-fail-withdraw (DFW) rates. We will discuss which measures are most pertinent for contemporary language programs and how to interpret data from your own institution in ways that are immediately useful for instructors and students.
- Dr. Paula Winke (Michigan State University)
- "Planning a Semester Ahead for Communicative Assessments in Language Classrooms"
- Monday, April 3rd, 2023
- 3:30-5:00pm EST
- Dr. Winke will showcase two communicative assessment types, which each have very different purposes. We will map out an idealized semester plan, wherein self-assessments, group orals, weekly achievement quizzes, and other assessments (writing tasks, Oral Proficiency Interviews, multimodal tasks, etc.) live side-by-side to measure the various types of learning and achievement that occur through class instruction.
- Dr. Meg Malone (ACTFL Director of Assessment and Research)
- "Assessment in Communicative Language Classrooms"
- Thursday, March 9th, 2023
- 3:30-5:00pm EST
- Assessment is critical to understanding the extent to which language has been taught and learned. This presentation focuses on ways to assess language in a communicative-based classroom with a focus on assessing oral proficiency. Sample tasks, rubrics and strategies will help participants determine ways to both include more proficiency-based assessment activities and communicate results to learners.
- Dr. Manuela Wagner (University of Connecticut)
- “Teaching for intercultural dialogue: From theory to practice”
- Wednesday, November 15, 2022
- 3:00-4:30pm EST
- In this workshop, we think about how we can plan, teach, and assess intercultural competence in language education. We bridge theory and practice by analyzing lesson plans that intentionally and systematically integrate the knowledge, skills, and attitudes required to engage in intercultural dialogue and solve real world problems in the target language.
- Dr. Paul Toth (Temple University)
- “How to focus on linguistic accuracy within a task-based approach to language teaching”
- Tuesday, October 11, 2022
- 3:00-4:30pm EST
- This webinar equips second language teachers to integrate a focus on target grammar and vocabulary items within a communicative, task-based lesson design. Participants will explore the possibilities for utilizing authentic texts both as motivators for learners’ communicative self-expression and as a basis for developing learners’ understanding of how linguistic tools can be utilized for their own purposes. After briefly reviewing cognitive and social perspectives on the role of grammar instruction in second language development, the presenter will share his own materials and research on how learners engage in interpretive and interpersonal communication while working on accuracy with target structures.