Nagoya and Gifu JALT:

Digital language learning strategies: A look at how our students are using tech outside of class and what we can learn from it

Date: Saturday, May 24th, 2025 Time: 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM

Speaker: Joseph C. Wood

Description:
Language learning strategies (LLSs) are the conscious and purposeful actions that learners take on their own to improve their language skills. These types of strategies have been of interest to language teachers and researchers since the mid 1970s and can be as simple as underlining new words/key phrases in books or writing in a daily journal using the target language. As technology continues to advance, however, digital language learning strategies (DLLSs) have become more commonly used. Learners are now using smartphone apps to create flashcards for vocabulary, practice pronunciation, study grammar, and much more. They can even work on improving their language skills by using AI tools like ChatGPT, listening to podcasts, or finding language exchange partners online they can practice speaking their target language with.

This presentation will highlight the ways in which 73 university students in Japan used DLLSs to become more autonomous learners outside of class and discusses which types of strategies they believed were the most helpful in terms of learning English based on survey and interview data that were collected and analyzed for the study. The presentation will introduce various apps and websites that have become popular with language learners recently as well as highlight other current trends in CALL.

Organization: Nagoya and Gifu Chapter of the Japan Association for Language Teaching (Nagoya and Gifu JALT)

Cost: JALT Members: free for members and undergraduate students
Non-members: 1,000 yen

Venue: Nagoya Kokusai Center 4th floor No.3 building

Location: Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan

Contact Nagoya and Gifu JALT

Website: jalt.org/nagoya-gifu