The Language Teachers’ Nexus event took place on 2 and 3 June at King’s College London, to continue developing the Community of Practice launched in January 2025 in Louvain-la-Neuve (UCLouvain) by the Circle U. Multilingualism, Interculturality and Language Lab (CU.mil). The event, held at Bush House, was marked by inspiration, sharing and openness.
On the menu
Around fifty people from different universities of the Circle U. Alliance came together at King's College London for an event to share their knowledge and teaching practices.
According to Miguel Garcia Tarifa, one of the organizers, “the event aimed to showcase new practices and provide opportunities for idea exchange, connection-building, and collaboration among colleagues.”
He also shared an overview of the event with us: “Over the two days, participants from King’s College London, UCLouvain, the University of Vienna, and Université Paris Cité presented innovative practices and research-oriented projects. Topics included the effective integration of AI in language teaching, student co-creation, reflective journaling, and initiatives promoting intercultural competences through reflective pedagogy, decolonial research, and tandem learning, emphasising cultural awareness and student empowerment in diverse educational contexts.
The final sessions focused on bridging the gap between research and practice, with plenaries delivered by colleagues from UCLouvain and King’s College London.
Various NEXUS activities and social events were strategically planned throughout the event to encourage meaningful engagement with the presenters, to facilitate idea-sharing, and foster connections between participants, laying the groundwork for collaborative projects in the upcoming academic year.
The event was a great success, and we hope it serves as a catalyst for further collaboration.”
Behind the scenes
This opportunity to share perspectives, knowledge and practices was organized by Cyril Bastanes, Miguel I. Garcia Tarifa and Ana Maria Sousa Aguiar de Medeiros, from King’s College. Cyril Bastanes has shared some details about the organizational side of things.
He mentioned that they faced several challenges: novelty of organizing this type of event, logistical aspects (room reservation, coffee breaks, etc.), presentations for an audience of researchers and peers, and compiling the schedule. This element was particularly challenging – deciding how to group talks, identifying thematic links, and managing last-minute changes all added complexity. A further difficulty was, according to Cyril, finding the right balance in the program — maintaining a clear narrative thread while ensuring enough diversity so that everyone could find sessions relevant to their interests. In that sense, the organizers aimed to be as inclusive as possible in their selection of presentations, so that the variety of topics offered something for everyone.
For Cyril, one of the most memorable aspects of the second day was the emerging theme of bridging the gap between research and teaching, which was highlighted by various speakers. This aspect was particularly important, as research can sometimes appear abstract or disconnected from the everyday practice of teaching.
When asked to summarize the event, Cyril chose the word “openness” – not only in the range of presentations but also in the discussions that followed. There was a high level of engagement from the audience, with many questions raised. In several instances, speakers openly acknowledged that they didn’t have an answer or expressed surprise at perspectives they hadn’t previously considered. This led to genuine dialogue and a strong sense of intellectual openness.
A participant’s perspective
Danica Kuzelka, a student assistant from the University of Vienna, also gave us her thoughts on the two days: “I appreciated the practice-oriented focus of the event and found it very enriching to connect with and learn from participants from different universities. Each presentation provided valuable insights into how others approach teaching and there was something I could learn from each and every one of them. I particularly appreciated the discussion rounds throughout the event. They were highly relevant and applicable to the classroom, and it was great to speak to colleagues and ask follow-up questions or ask about their opinions on something I have been struggling with.”
Multilingual atmosphere
From our personal perspective, the London event was a mix of casual gatherings around dim sum in Chinatown, sunny walks guided by locals, and the sharing of knowledge and discussions in lecture halls. At the center of this gathering: languages in the plural.
Conversations flowed from one language to another – the arrival of a new person could shift the entire conversation from Spanish to French, or from French to English – with the intention of adapting to one another, sharing, learning from each other, and valuing both the diversity of opinions and the diversity of languages.
