July 2-3, 2026 | at the University of Bamberg in collaboration with the University of Hannover
Join us for a two-day symposium exploring the affordances, risks, and challenges of immersive virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) in foreign language education. This international symposium aims to bring together a group of researchers focusing on VR in foreign language education, while also welcoming submissions that examine the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in immersive contexts – including teacher professionalization, the development of teaching concepts, materials development, practical applications, and learner perspectives. We aim to provide a platform for the discussion of VR- and AI-assisted language learning in an innovative format that offers plenty of time for discussions and networking.
Keynote presentations
Two international keynote presentations will offer insights into current research perspectives:
Regina Kaplan-Rakowski Assistant Professor at the University of North Texas Keynote on VR-assisted language learning
Christiane Reves Clinical Assistant Professor and Language Program Director at New York University Keynote on AI-assisted language learning
Call for contributions: Moonshots – 5 minutes & 5 slides!
We invite abstracts for 5-minute moonshot presentations describing planned, ongoing, or future studies, focusing on research interests and (preliminary) findings. Presentations are restricted to 5 minutes and 5 slides.
Your 150-word abstracts (excluding references) should contain a title, a short bio of the presenter(s), clearly stating your research interests and the focus of your moonshot.
Please send your abstract to: vr.tefl@uni-bamberg.de by 15 January 2026.
Please note that we may invite contributors to form thematic groups or present their work in alternative formats.
Organizers:
This event is organized by the universities of Bamberg (TEFL Department, Prof. Dr. Theresa Summer with Martina Ebenberger, Rebecca Flämig, Claudia Schnellbögl, Michelle Zirkel) and Hannover (Dr. Jennifer Wengler, Department of Romance Languages and Literatures) in cooperation with the project BaTEGS (contact: Dr. Jaroslaw Jasenowski) with funding from the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space and the German Academic Exchange Service.
Further information will be available online at https://www.uni-bamberg.de/eng-fachdidaktik/veranstaltungen/symposia and https://www.romanistik.uni-hannover.de.