The ACTR Board of Directors is pleased to announce our 50^th Anniversary Virtual Conference on the study and teaching of Russian language and culture: 

Teaching and Learning Russian as a Second and Heritage Language
in a Diverse and Changing World  

ACTR welcomes submissions from both early-career and established scholars, teachers and researchers from all countries and regions where Russian is taught as a second, third, or heritage language. We especially encourage submissions from colleagues from under-represented groups and/or who teach at institutions serving minority, inner-city, or rural populations. 

There is no registration fee for this conference.

Conference languages:
English, Russian

Keynote Speakers:

• Judith Kroll, "Being and Becoming Bilingual: New Insights About the Mind and the Brain Reveal the Openness of Language Learning" (University of California, Irvine, USA)
  

• Eleonora Suleimenova, "The Current Language Situation in Kazakhstan: From Language Shift to Russian to Language Diversification" (Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Almaty, Kazakhstan)
  

Conference Areas:
We encourage proposals that reflect on past experiences, present innovative ideas, research, and pedagogical solutions, and identify future directions for the teaching and learning of the Russian language and culture. Submissions are invited on a wide range of scholarly and pedagogical topics related to Russian language and culture education, including but not limited to the following 6 general areas. Applicants should indicate which of the following areas they wish to have their submissions considered:  

I. Teaching Russian at Pre-K, Primary, Secondary, Tertiary and Adult Levels           
●     Integrating language and culture in the language classroom
●     Transformative language teaching and learning
●     Incorporating the principles of Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, Inclusion, and Belonging in Russian language teaching
●     Differentiation in Russian language classrooms
●     Content-based courses and language-across-curriculum courses
●     Teaching mass media and new media
●     Methodologies and approaches: Project-based learning, Сommunity-based learning, Task-based learning, etc.
●     Maximizing language use outside the classroom

II. Acquiring Russian as a Second or Heritage Language
●     Understanding the potential of language and cultural immersion: Dual Language Immersion, Domestic Intensive Immersion, Overseas Immersion (Early, Mid-Level, Advanced-Level).
●     Supporting heritage learners throughout their learning careers
●     Developing socio-pragmatic skills at all levels
●     Assuring that learners’ structural control of the language meets their communicative needs: grammar in context
●     Linking proficiency gains and intercultural development 

III. Assessing Student Progress in Learning Russian
●     Traditional and alternative forms of assessment / grading in a Russian language classroom
●     Implicit and explicit forms of corrective feedback for learners of different ages and levels of proficiency.
●     School-to-College articulation for advanced placement or credit by exam
●     Maximizing the value of standardized testing for student learning and program support: TORFL, OPI, ACTFL, Flagship, DLPT5.

IV. Technology and the Study of Russian
●    Instructional technology for Russian language teaching and learning
●    Artificial Intelligence in the Russian language classroom
●    Online and hybrid language teaching
●    Maximizing target-language use outside the classroom: the student as digital consumer
●    New technologies for language teaching  

V. The Study of Russian in a Changing World
●     The changing norms of modern Russian
●     Russian as a lingua franca
●     The functioning of Russian in bi-lingual/ multi-lingual societies
●     Trends in the study and teaching of Russian in different countries and world regions 

VI. Strengthening Russian Language Education: Advocacy, Partnerships, Policy and Research
●     Professional development and training for teachers
●     Advocating for Russian language programs
●     Recruiting underserved learners to Russian learning
●     Program development and assessment
●     Bridging secondary and post-secondary Russian language education
●     Russian language program partnerships

The conference will feature three presentation formats:

• Panels: Three 20-minute papers, 20–30-minute Q&A

• Roundtables: Five 10-minute presentations, followed by a discussion

• 5-Minute Share-Outs: Brief presentations of practical teaching ideas on a focused topic of your choice and a discussion

Submission Guidelines:

We invite proposals from both ACTR members and non-members. Abstracts of presentations not exceeding 350 words should be submitted on the ACTR Anniversary by December 15, 2024.

Submission requirements depend on your preferred format (Individual Paper, OrganizedRegular Panel, Roundtable, or 5-Minute Share-Out Series): 

Individual Papers: 20-minute presentations, followed by Q&A. Submissions should include a title and a 350-word abstract outlining the paper’s objective, methodology, and key findings. / 

Organized Panels: 90 minutes, with three papers (20 minutes each) addressing a shared topic, followed by a 30 minute discussion. Proposals must include a panel title, individual abstracts, and information about the chair (500 words). 

Roundtables: 90 minutes, featuring four 15-minute or five 10-minute presentations on a single topic, encouraging participant interaction. Provide a summary of the session’s focus and short descriptions for each presentation (350 words). 

5-Minute Share-Outs Series: A series of 4-5 brief, practical teaching demonstrations, each lasting five minutes, followed by discussion. This format is ideal for sharing strategies, tools, or activities. Organize a group of 4-5 presenters who present on a common topic, provide a title, the names of all presenters, and a 100–150 word description of your general share-out topic with a 2-3 sentence description of each presenter's. contribution. Focus on practical, actionable strategies relevant to Russian language education. We encourage you to seek diverse participants by reaching out to your colleagues through professional listserv and other professional channels.

Following a peer double blind review process, authors will be notified of acceptance by January 31, 2025.  

Participation Guidelines

• Language: Submissions may be in English or Russian.

• Multiple Submissions: Participants may present in multiple sessions, but only one individual paper per participant is allowed.

• Membership: Both ACTR members and non-members are welcome to participate. 
• There is no registration fee for this event.

Important Dates:

Submission deadline: December 15, 2024
Notification deadline: January 31, 2025
Conference dates:  April 25-26, 2025

Contact Information: 

ACTR50Conference at gmail.com

We look forward to your participation in this special event as we celebrate the rich history and dynamic future of Russian language education.