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ScholarSpace is an open-access, digital institutional repository for the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa community. ScholarSpace stores the intellectual works and unique collections of the UH at Mānoa academic community and also provides a permanent web location for those accessing these resources.

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GenAI chatbots in language learning: A systematic review of emerging affordances
(University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center, 2026-07-13) Lopez, Luis; Arabadzhy, Galyna; Yu-ju Lan
Educators are increasingly using GenAI chatbots in language learning classrooms. However, without a guiding theoretical framework, GenAI use may emphasize technological capabilities while overlooking the instructional and social goals of the learning environment. In this systematic review, we draw on the usefulness framework from the field of computer-supported collaborative learning to examine 24 empirical studies on the use of GenAI chatbots in language learning classrooms published between 2022 and 2025. By tracing how educators are using GenAI chatbots’ in language learning classrooms, we identify (1) the technological, pedagogical, and social affordances that were reported in previous research and continue being used, (2) the development of new sub-affordances within these three categories, and (3) the emergence of a new category of affordances related to the emotional state of learners, which we call Emotional Affordances. This new category, furthermore, nests a new subset of chatbots’ capabilities: Engagement, Safety, and Self-Efficacy, thus expanding the existing theoretical framework. The results provide theoretical and pedagogical implications that contribute to the field of computer-assisted language learning (CALL).
Teaching social-emotional learning through AIDT in EFL classrooms
(University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center, 2026-07-09) Pak, Sooyeon; Choi, Lee Jin; Matt Kessler
As the Korean Ministry of Education prepares to mandate Korean Social-Emotional Learning (K-SEL) across all grade levels starting in 2026, English teachers in South Korea face the challenge of meaningfully integrating SEL into subject-area instruction. This Technology in Practice Forum paper reports on a one-year pilot experience in which an AI-based Digital Textbook (AIDT) was used in a secondary English classroom to facilitate SEL. By using avatar customization and a daily emotion check-in in warm-up routines, the teacher created opportunities for language learners to express emotions in English, engage in small talk with the teacher, and build classroom rapport while developing both English communicative competence and social-emotional skills. Based on a one-year classroom experience, the paper discusses the benefits, challenges, and practical recommendations for the sustained integration of AI-driven educational technology and SEL in English classrooms.
AI-generated vs teacher feedback: A comparative study on EFL learners’ public speaking anxiety and oral presentation performance
(University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center, 2026-07-09) Ayaz Yilmaz, Hafize; Er, Gülay
This comparative study investigates the impact of artificial intelligence (AI)-generated feedback versus teacher-provided feedback on public speaking anxiety (PSA) and oral presentation performance among Turkish EFL learners. Adopting a quasi-experimental pre-test–post-test control group research design, thirty university students took part in the study. They were assigned to either an experimental group receiving AI feedback or a control group receiving teacher feedback. Over five weeks, participants delivered presentations and received feedback based on their group assignment. Quantitative data were collected through the Public Speaking Anxiety Scale (PSAS) to measure anxiety levels and a standardized rubric to evaluate oral presentation performance. The findings showed that both feedback types significantly decreased students’ public speaking anxiety and improved their presentation skills. Specifically, AI-generated feedback resulted in a notably greater reduction in PSA, whereas both groups achieved similar improvements in oral performance. Qualitative data from interviews with AI group participants supported the quantitative findings, underlining increased self-awareness, practical guidance, and enhanced confidence. The study concludes that while both feedback sources are effective for skill development, AI-generated feedback holds a distinct advantage in decreasing public speaking anxiety. This underlines the value of AI as a complementary tool in EFL speaking instruction, supporting a hybrid pedagogical model that harnesses the strengths of both automated and human feedback.
Investigating the impact of chatbot design features on affective variables: A mixed-methods study
(University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center, 2026-07-06) Lee, Jang Ho; Lee, Hansol; Kim, Kyungmin
This study investigated how chatbots, designed with distinct personality traits (more engaging vs. less engaging) and feedback features (basic vs. enhanced) influenced L2 learners’ affective variables, such as anxiety, enjoyment, curiosity, and boredom, during their conversational interactions. Although second language acquisition research, including AI-based chatbot studies, has examined how learners’ emotions are shaped during L2 tasks, there has been insufficient focus on how variations in chatbot characteristics affect learners’ emotional experiences. To address this gap, we conducted a mixed-methods study of undergraduate EFL students, examining their interactions with three conversational agents, each featuring distinct combinations of personality traits and feedback features. Participants engaged in conventional tasks and completed a questionnaire to assess affective variables, which was supplemented with open-ended questions to gain further insights. Our findings revealed how L2 learners’ emotional experiences differ depending on the conversational agents’ characteristics. Based on these insights, we propose the pedagogical implications for the design and implementation of chatbots for L2 learning.
Comprehension monitoring in EFL reading: Text coding and AI scaffolding
(University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center, 2026-07-06) Abdelhalim, Safaa M.
Comprehension monitoring plays an important role in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading, particularly at inferential and critical levels, yet it is not consistently supported in instruction. This mixed-methods study examined the effects of two comprehension-monitoring interventions, AI-assisted dialogic scaffolding and Modified Text Coding (MTC), on first-year English majors’ literal, inferential, and critical reading comprehension. Using a 13-week quasi-experimental design, 34 undergraduate EFL learners completed pre- and post-reading comprehension tests, weekly reflections, and focus group interviews. Quantitative analyses showed significant gains for both conditions; however, in this context, the MTC group outperformed the AI-assisted group on inferential, critical, and overall comprehension. Qualitative findings indicated that AI-assisted scaffolding supported meaning clarification, reduced linguistic burden, and facilitated dialogic engagement, whereas MTC fostered more structured, self-regulated monitoring routines and deeper strategic processing. The findings contribute to EFL reading research by clarifying how comprehension-monitoring instruction supports higher-order reading processes in EFL contexts.
Extensive reading with literature circles in an advanced CFL classroom
(University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center, 2026-07-06) Li, Xiaoshi; Zhou, Wenying
This study examines changes in advanced Chinese as a foreign language students’ reading attitudes and perceptions during a semester-long implementation of extensive reading (ER) with literature circle (LC) activities. The research was conducted in a Chinese Short Stories course at an American university with 12 learners. Quantitative data collected through pre- and post-course surveys of reading attitudes were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, with paired-samples t-tests as a robustness check. Qualitative data from a final reflection survey were analyzed thematically. Quantitative results showed significant increases in participants’ confidence, enjoyment, devotion, perceived practical value, and interest in reading Chinese. Qualitative findings indicated greater engagement with Chinese literature and culture, increased enjoyment of reading, discussion, and interpretation, strengthened confidence and perceived language gains, and the value of scaffolding for participation. Overall, the results suggest that incorporating ER with LC activities may be associated with positive developments in learners’ reading attitudes and engagement.
LLT Announces New Editors-in-Chief
(2026-07-02) LLT Staff
Enhancing student researchers’ move construction in literature review writing through genre learning supported by corpus-based language pedagogy
(University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center, 2026-07-02) Yan, Jiahao; Ma, Qing; Pérez-Paredes, Pascual
This study addresses a challenging pedagogical task for English academic writing educators: move instruction. It explores how corpus-based language pedagogy (CBLP), integrated with genre learning, can support student researchers in constructing moves in literature review writing (LRW). A 12-week CBLP-LRW course was designed to help 30 Chinese MA students construct schematic move structures and improve LRW performance. Informed by CBLP and genre-based writing instruction, a four-stage instructional model encompassing preparation, apprenticeship, acquisition, and application was developed. Data were collected from pre- and post-course literature reviews and semi-structured interviews. Student literature reviews were annotated for rhetorical moves and the strategies used to realise them, and they were evaluated with a focus on genre performance. A one-way repeated measures MANOVA and post-hoc paired-samples t-tests revealed students’ improved move structures and the corresponding strategies, supported by follow-up qualitative textual analyses. The results of Wilcoxon Signed-Rank tests and textual analyses demonstrated student researchers’ significant improvements in genre performance. Thematic analysis of post-course interviews highlighted participants’ gains in LRW skills, including stronger critical reading and more effective self-revision of literature reviews. Our study contributes to the understanding of how CBLP fosters the development of both move and genre performance in LRW for student researchers.
The Ethics of Teaching Medieval Worlds: Student Engagement and Decentred Perspectives on History
(2026) Karen Louise Jolly
Medieval history is taking a global turn in two key ways: first, the inclusion of content extending beyond Europe and the Afro-Eurasian interconnected worlds to the Americas and Oceania; and second, the integration of historiographic approaches emerging from outside Euro-American traditions, and specifically from postcolonial and Indigenous Studies. How should those teaching medieval history incorporate these global perspectives? What are the ethical issues for a non-Indigenous scholar using Indigenous knowledge systems to re-orient our understanding of premodern histories? This book offers insights and practical suggestions from a historian trained as a Euro-medievalist transforming into a global medievalist, and drawing on experiences teaching premodern world and medieval histories in Oceania.
Evaluating Beauveria Bassiana (Balsamo-Crivelli) Strain Gha and a Micronutrient Amendment Product for Hypothenemus Hampei (Ferrari) Management at Small Scales
(2026-06-30) RT Curtiss; Robert J Orpet; Andrea M Kawabata; Staurt T Nakamoto
Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is the primary insect pest of coffee in the Hawaiian Islands. Management recommendations for H. hampei are established, but it is unknown whether applications of Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo-Crivelli) strain GHA are effective on extremely small farm plots when surrounded by unmanaged coffee. In addition, some Hawaiʻi coffee farmers that use other farm management products have anecdotally noted effects on H. hampei. A field experiment using three-tree plots was established to determine if H. hampei suppression with B. bassiana can be achieved on small scales with unmanaged and feral coffee nearby, and if the untested mineral-based fertilizer product, BAM-FX ® , in use by some coffee farmers for H. hampei management, was associated with reduced infestation relative to control. Significant differences were found between water-, B. bassiana-, and BAM-FX ® -treated plots, however B. bassiana treatment resulted in the lowest coffee cherry infestation (31.1%) and bean damage (10.8%). Although damage was not below economically viable levels, B. bassiana suppressed H. hampei in small plots.