Generative AI presents a critical paradox for language practitioners. Research confirms that while GenAI tools can significantly improve measurable outcomes like student writing scores, this efficacy often comes at a high pedagogical cost. A 2025 study found that students using GenAI, despite higher scores, reported a significant “loss of creativity and agency” and a lower “ideal L2 writing self”, leading to “overreliance”.

Rapid developments in generative artificial intelligence (AI) have opened the floodgates for exploration into how AI tools can be leveraged to enhance our human capacities in all manner of work and learning. As is the case with any new technology, the usefulness of AI depends on its principled use. This 90-minute webinar centers on the interpretive mode of communication, and specifically on reading in a foreign language. It takes the perspective that reading is a multiliteracies practice and that the use of generative AI tools by teachers and learners can both help and hinder L2 reading. First, we will unpack the concept of reading as a multiliteracies practice, and review some common goals for L2 reading based on scholarship and standards. Next, we will examine specific uses of AI tools in materials design and foreign language learner tasks, including gains and losses involved when AI is used to generate materials for learners or interpret a text by learners. Participants will learn:

As language educators explore emerging possibilities with generative AI, a key challenge arises: how can we use these tools in ways that meaningfully enhance teaching and learning, so that AI is understood not as a replacement but as a valuable pedagogical resource? This webinar discusses approaches rooted in pedagogical decision-making, positioning AI as a creative partner in curriculum design and lesson planning. It will also consider how GenAI can support hybrid teaching models through combinations of in-person interaction and AI-mediated practice that expand access for learners with limited time.

The session reviews how the need for more speaking opportunities led to the development and integration of a proficiency-standards-aligned AI conversation partner into a hybrid course curriculum. It will highlight examples of AI-supported role plays and communicative tasks tailored to different proficiency levels and communicative goals, demonstrating how AI can enhance the use of authentic materials in the classroom environment. In addition, the webinar examines how educators can leverage collaborations with institutional and external partners to secure support and funding for innovative initiatives.

This conversation invites educators to reflect on and explore how generative AI can open new pathways for immersive, communicative, and accessible language learning.