JASAL 2026 National Conference

Host University

JASAL 2026 will take place at Osaka Institute of Technology (OIT), Omiya Campus in Osaka, on Saturday, 10th October, 2026.

We also hope to offer a SAC Tour of the Language Learning Center (LLC), the self-access centre at OIT, on the afternoon of Friday, 9th October, and an online component to the conference – more details to follow later.

JASAL 2026 will take place at Osaka Institute of Technology (OIT), Omiya Campus in Osaka, on Saturday, 10th October, 2026.

Conference Theme

Empowering Language Learning: Self-Access, Advising, and Technology
Supporting language learners to navigate the affordances offered by technology has been a key aspect of self-access language learning (SALL) since its foundation in the 1970s and 1980s. This has long been a key role for learning advisors and other educators, and is equally important in a world increasingly dominated by mobile technologies and AI.

Join us as we bridge the gap between theory and practice, investigating how the integration of physical spaces, pedagogical support, and digital innovation can empower learners to navigate their own language learning journeys with confidence and purpose.

Plenary Speaker

Maria de la Paz Adelia Peña Clavel

Associate Professor at the School of Languages, Linguistics and Translation in UNAM.

Associate professor at the National School of Languages, Linguistics, and Translation (ENALLT) at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She is responsible for the Teletándem Project at the ENALLT Self-Access Centre (Mediateca). She is a tutor for the online Diploma Program for Learning Advisors of SALCs. She is a professor in the Applied Linguistics Program at ENALLT, where she teaches Learner Autonomy and Telecollaboration. She has been an advisor at the Mediateca since 1996. She holds a Master’s degree in Educational Technology from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) and a Master’s degree in Virtual Learning Environments from Virtual Educa and the University of Panama. She has just graduated from the Online Diploma Course in Artificial Intelligence and Gamification. She is also a specialist in Virtual Learning Environments, certified by the Organisation of Ibero-American States (OEI) and Virtual Educa. She has presented lectures and workshops at national and international conferences on learner autonomy and learner development in the classroom, in self-access centres, and with digital tools. She is the founder and President of the Academic Research Network of Learner Autonomy in México. Her research interests are gamification and learner training for Learner Autonomy, Telecollaboration, and the impact of AI in SALCs.

Call for Papers

At this year’s JASAL conference we invite practitioners and researchers to examine how advising in language learning provides the essential human scaffolding for self-directed paths. Furthermore, we seek to analyze how emergent technologies, from AI-driven personalization to immersive digital environments, can be harnessed to support, rather than replace, the reflective process.

We welcome submissions on this and other self-access related topics, such as:

● Innovations in learning advising/counselling/coaching
● Influence of emergent technologies and AI on self-access
● Virtual self-access
● SAC design and layout
● Self-access and curriculum, learning program design
● Managing and administrating self-access centres
● Learning communities and learner involvement in SACs
● Student perspectives on SALL
● Assessment of self-access SALL
● Research design in SALL
● Professional development for SALL / Learning advisor education
● Promotion of SACs & SALL
● Lifelong learning
● Study abroad & SALL

Presentation Formats

We are accepting proposals for the following kinds of presentations. Please note that at this year’s conference we will have a limited number of online presentation slots available.

Research presentation (on-site or online) (20+5 mins)
Practices presentation (on-site or online) (15+10mins)
Workshop (on-site only) (45 mins)
Poster session (on-site only)

When submitting your proposal, please indicate if you are only able to accept an online presentation slot. All presenters should be JASAL members at time of registration. (To join JASAL, please send us an email, and include the information requested on the website.)

We welcome submissions in both English and Japanese. Please note that each presenter should be the lead presenter on only ONE submission, and may appear as a co-presenter on only one other submission. Once received, proposals will be blinded and peer-reviewed by at least two members of the JASAL board to ensure quality and relevance to JASAL.

Undergraduate students are welcome to submit to one of these formats with a member of staff (faculty member or administrator), but we encourage these students to participate in the dedicated student conference and other student-centred events, where they will have more opportunities to interact with peers.