Dear TIRF Board Members and Supporters, On April 10-11, 2025, the conference titled “The Future of English Education in Asia – Power of Teaching in the AI Era,” co-hosted by National Geographic Learning and City University of Macau, was successfully held at the City University of Macau. As Rector of
Editor’s note: In this piece, Caroline Greeney, Associate Digital Marketing Manager at National Geographic Learning (NGL), shares information with TIRF supporters about an upcoming webinar on “future-ready skills.” Join National Geographic Learning’s (NGL) upcoming webinar to discover why “future-ready skills” are essential to prepare English language learners for today’s global
Editor’s note: In this piece, Diane Larsen-Freeman, PhD, (Professor Emerita of Education and of Linguistics, University of Michigan; Research Scientist Emerita and Former Director, English Language Institute, University of Michigan; Professor Emerita, SIT Graduate Institute; and Visiting Faculty, University of Pennsylvania) shares an obituary of Dr. H. Joan Morley, a
We are pleased to announce that Xiaoxin Damerow has joined The International Research Foundation for English Language Education (TIRF) as its new Executive Assistant. With her appointment, TIRF continues to strengthen its capacity to support global English language education and research initiatives. In her new role, Xiaoxin will provide key
Editor’s note: In this piece, TIRF Trustee Anna Krulatz and her colleagues Rai Farrelly, Zuzana Tomaš, Kristen Lindahl, and Tamrika Khvtisiashvili highlight a session at a recent presentation that took place during the 2025 TESOL Convention, designed to honor TIRF Trustee MaryAnn Chrisitson. The Teacher Education Interest Section (TEIS) of
If you missed TIRF’s presentation at the 2025 TESOL Convention, we have good news to share. A slidecast has been created and posted to TIRF’s website and YouTube Channel. Click here to access the recording. The presentation is entitled “AI and Language Education: What Works, What Doesn’t, What’s Next.” The
Just last month, the TIRF Board of Trustees adopted TESOL International Association’s statement in response to the U.S. Executive Order designating English as the official language of the United States. In doing so, TIRF joins TESOL—and a growing number of other organizations—in expressing concern over the implications of this policy
Editor’s note: In this piece, we share details about an international symposium TIRF is co-hosting with United International College, its partner in Zhuhai, China. We are proud to spotlight the upcoming TIRF-UIC International Symposium on AI-Empowered English Language Teaching and Learning, taking place on May 17, 2025, in Zhuhai, Guangdong,
The proposal window for the 2025 TIRF Kathleen M. Bailey Teacher-Research Award (hereafter, the “TIRF Bailey Award”) is currently open. Recipients of the TIRF Bailey Award will receive $1,000 and will have an opportunity to receive mentoring services from the Foundation. The TIRF Bailey Award is meant to recognize Dr.
The application window for TIRF’s 2025 Doctoral Dissertation Grants (DDG) program is rapidly approaching. The Foundation’s flagship program is designed to provide awards for doctoral students nearing the completion of their studies. There are three different types of DDGs offered from TIRF and its partners this year. Once again, we
Editor’s note: ChatGPT was used to help create the following announcement. TIRF is partnering with TESOL International Association and inviting educators, researchers, and graduate students to the 2025 TESOL-TIRF Research Symposium—a fully online professional development event that brings together global voices in English language education. This symposium is designed to
The 2026 TIRF James E. Alatis Prize for Research in Language Policy and Planning in Educational Contexts nomination period is now open! As in past years, for the 2026 program, a prize of $500 will be awarded for an article or chapter published in English and dealing with some aspect
The TIRF-British Council Research Mentoring Awards (RMA) program is now open! The RMA program is designed to support new researchers and improve the quality of research undertaken by students in doctoral programs within the field of English language education on issues of mutual interest to TIRF and the British Council.
