Have you ever wondered how much you can actually get out of a virtual conference? In this post, Ruben Dawagne shares how stepping into an online professional space opened up new ideas, connections, and opportunities. If you’re curious about what a virtual conference can offer you as a student, his experience might be the inspiration you need!
This spring, I presented at the Intercultural Competence Conference (ICC 2026) at the University of Arizona. The theme (Intercultural Competence in a Rapidly Changing World: Supporting Sustainable Futures for All) focused on how language education can respond thoughtfully to global and technological change.
My session, “From UX to LX: Building Better Language Learners Through Design Thinking,” brought together my work as both a language teacher and a software engineer. I explored how principles from user experience (UX) design and agile development can shape the way we design classroom experiences. Rather than centering tools, I focused on participation: what makes it easy (or difficult) for learners to engage consistently.
Using the “thumb zone” metaphor from UX design, I argued that participation is often a design outcome. When cognitive load, emotional risk, linguistic demand, and time pressure all spike at once, learners may withdraw, not because they lack motivation, but because the task becomes difficult to access. Reframing disengagement as a design issue shifts attention back to structure and support.
To make this concrete, I shared an example of a co-created “Survival French Guide.” Starting with an ACTFL Can-Do statement such as “I can request services (e.g., repair for a phone or computer),” students expanded the task through user stories:
As a small business owner, I want to request a computer repair so that I don’t lose client data.
As a parent with a young child, I want to request a phone repair so that I can stay reachable in case of emergency.
As someone who is hard of hearing, I want to ask for clarification so that I fully understand the repair options.
Instead of memorizing fixed phrases, students generated and refined multiple ways to make requests, compared tone and register, and adapted language to context. AI supported the process by helping students explore variations and rehearse before live interaction, while students remained the evaluators and decision-makers.
The hybrid format of the conference also reflected many of the design principles I discussed. Virtual attendance, recorded sessions, and flexible access expanded participation and made the professional dialogue more inclusive. Experiencing a conference structured with multiple entry points reinforced the connection between accessibility and sustainability in both professional and classroom settings.
This presentation was shaped in important ways by the MAFLT program. Dr. Poole’s guidance in CALL helped me think more critically about how AI can function as a design partner rather than a shortcut. Dr. Sommer Farias first shared the conference opportunity and offered valuable feedback as I refined the proposal. Dr. Lanier’s input on user stories and their connection to ACTFL Can-Do statements strengthened the pedagogical bridge at the center of my session.
Presenting at ICC 2026 allowed me to connect coursework on learner identity, intercultural competence, and technology with my experience in software development. It also reminded me that language educators are designers, whether we name it that way or not. Thoughtful design grounded in accessibility, agency, and intercultural awareness can support sustained participation in an increasingly complex world.
