THE NEXT WAVE OF DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGY ON LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

Abstract

Abstract

Inevitably, our world has converged to the age of westernization (americanization) and the global acceptance of the English language. The western culture is being massively imported throughout the world with the help of digital technologies and has been influencing the way we use our language and the way we behave in our daily life. This situation indicates the importance of English language education. However, teaching language to non-speaking English learners is extremely challenging due to different cultural paradigms and contexts. It begs the incorporation of the socio-cultural context in the teaching approaches to match the learning styles of local students. In this talk, I present what disruptive technologies such as Computational Linguistics (CL), Augmented Reality (AR), and Internet of Things (IoT), as new tools, can offer for the future of language education. For the first time in history, soon, almost everything on planet earth will be digitized connecting individuals to their homes, schools, devices, and communities. What is the impact on the quality of our language education and culture will become vital. More research on how to use these tools effectively, the attitude of learners and teachers towards them, and the effects on teaching and learning are of great importance to provide teachers, course designers, and policy makers with guidelines in these areas.

Keyword: Language, culture, human language technology, augmented reality, and internet of things