Topic: Redefining Advancedness: Implications for Pedagogy and Assessment
Workshop dates: May 11-15, 2026
Deadline for proposals: Friday, March 27, 2026
The CLS is happy to announce that we will once again offer an Instructional Innovation Workshop (IIW) this academic year. The IIW is a five-day intensive opportunity for language faculty to work on projects based on a specific theme that changes from year to year. We invite language faculty to submit proposals related to the workshop topic.
The theme of this year’s workshop is Redefining Advancedness: Implications for Pedagogy and Assessment. Since the publication of the 2007 and 2023 MLA reports, scholars and educators across the field have called for a reconceptualization of advanced proficiency that extends beyond functional linguistic control to encompass abilities that develop over time through sustained engagement with complex linguistic, cognitive, and sociocultural demands. Drawing on the discussions from our two journal clubs this spring, this year’s IIW embraces a perspective of advanced proficiency that includes, but is not limited to, functional linguistic control and is realized in extended, purposeful discourse; it is sensitive to context and genre; and it is best understood through longitudinal development. This expanded view of advancedness also includes the capacity to critically reflect on language as a social, ideological, and political practice.
The workshop will focus on the development of curricular interventions and/or assessment practices that reflect these contemporary understandings of advancedness. We welcome proposals situated at any level of the curriculum, recognizing that even courses in which advanced proficiency is not an immediate instructional outcome can, and should, create conditions that support learners’ long-term movement toward advanced levels of performance. Projects that intentionally integrate pedagogical design with assessment practices are especially encouraged
The workshop will start on Monday, May 11th, with an opening plenary session with participants, followed by a keynote presentation which will be open to the entire language community. Daily activities will run from 9:00-4:00 ending with a lunch on Friday, May 16th. As is our tradition, the IIW will feature lectures and mini-workshops by invited speakers, small-group-discussions, and brief final presentations by the participants.
Each participant selected will receive a stipend of $1000, which requires a commitment to develop a project to be implemented the following academic year, full attendance and participation in the entire workshop (M-TH 9:00 – 4:00 and Friday 9:00 – 1:00 p.m.), including a project presentation on the final day of the workshop, and sharing the results with your colleagues in a Brown Bag next academic year.
IIW participants will be asked to present on their projects as part of a CLS brown bag talk during the 2026-2027 academic year.
If you are interested in participating in this year’s IIW, please submit a 2-3 page detailed project proposal by March 27, 2026 to Mary Jo Lubrano (maryjo.lubrano@yale.edu) or Fernando Rubio (fernando.rubio@yale.edu).
The proposal should include:
- A title
- An abstract that briefly summarizes the project.
- A rationale for the project:
- Why are you proposing this OER?
- What specific needs will this OER help your course(s) or program address?
- A detailed description of your project:
- Outline the objectives and/or the scope and sequence of your proposed OER.
- Include a timeline for implementation of your proposed project.
- Describe how you plan to evaluate the effectiveness of your OER once implemented.
Please contact Fernando Rubio (Fernando.rubio@yale.edu) or Mary Jo Lubrano (maryjo.lubrano@yale.edu) if you have any questions. We’re happy to schedule an appointment (in-person or via Zoom) to discuss your project plans and to assist with your proposal development.