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6. Empowering Youth Through Language, AI, and Sustainable Advocacy: A Telecollaborative Approach

Maria Mont, Melinda Dooly, Onyemowo Angela Ejeme

This chapter is part of: Carol A. Chapelle et al. 2025. Researching Generative AI in Applied Linguistics

Description

This chapter explores the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in language education through the lens of a telecollaborative project, “The Young Activists Project.” Carried out over three months, the project involved 59 learners: 52 in Catalunya, Spain (ages 9–10 years old) and seven in Abuja, Nigeria (ages 10–14). This initiative combined AI with geographically distributed, project-based learning, with aims to enhance English language skills, digital literacy, and global awareness among young learners. A bespoke generative AI platform was utilized to facilitate language support for the multiple tasks in the project. Through multimodal interaction analysis applied to video recordings and screen recordings, this chapter examines if and how AI-driven tasks promoted language use and digital awareness during the project. Findings indicate that the young learners developed critical digital literacy skills by learning to refine their inputs for effective AI interactions, and they engaged with English more actively than in traditional classroom settings.
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Publication Details

Published: August 27, 2025

Publisher: Iowa State University Digital Press

Pages: 22

DOI: 10.31274/isudp.2025.211.06

License Information: © 2025 Mont, Dooly, & Ejeme. Published under a CC BY license.

Citation

Mont, M., Dooly, M., & Ejeme, O. A. (2025). Empowering youth through language, AI, and sustainable advocacy. In C. A. Chapelle, G. H. Beckett, & B. E. Gray (Eds.), Researching generative AI in applied linguistics (pp. 103–121). Iowa State University Digital Press. https://doi.org/10.31274/isudp.2025.211.06