Melinda Dooly, expert in telecollaboration and digital language education, delivered a keynote address at the Santiago de Compostela 2025 International Workshop on Discourse Analysis: Digital Language Learning, May 9–10, 2025. Her talk, titled “Bringing Vanguard Technology into Primary Education Language Teaching: Promises Kept?”, critically examined the integration of cutting-edge technologies—such as AI, AR, and telecollaborative tools—into language teaching for young learners. Drawing from classroom research and teacher training initiatives, Dr. Dooly explored whether these innovations have fulfilled their pedagogical promises and how they shape discourse in primary and secondary language education. Her address resonated with the audience of preservice and inservice teachers, as well as faculty from the English Philology department at the University of Santiago de Compostela.
GREIP’s insight
Dr. Dooly’s talk challenged educators to reflect on the real impact of vanguard technologies in primary language teaching and also underscored the need for research in this key area of education.