On the afternoon of May 17, Zheng Dongping, professor in the Department of Second Language Studies at the University of Hawaii, gave a lecture entitled Co-experiencing event friendship, languaging, well being and extended reality technologies and held a discussion with the MTI students in the school. Teachers and students in SFS participated. This lecture and discussion were hosted by Prof. Xiao Haozhang.

Prof. Zheng Dongping pointed out the relationship between events, friendship, well-being and language in a cross-cultural experience environment. Zheng noted that whether in virtual or in the real world, cross-cultural experience helps linguists learn to pay attention to their own language when talking to people from different cultures, thus promoting the well-being of language learners. She shared the following points. First, intercultural competence is usually a cognitive ability that individuals gain through their efforts in a cross-cultural environment. Second, people seek good prospects in conversations, not just information exchange. Third, from an ecological linguistic perspective, competence and well-being are the results of an organism-environment system. Fourth, in optimal coordination and equilibrium, the learning environment is inseparable from the behavior of language learners. Fifth, the dialogue-based cross-cultural well-being is based on common experience events and can be achieved through virtual reality technology and augmented reality technology. Sixth, if we don't think about the utilitarian nature of the virtual world for language learning, we can reposition the cross-cultural well-being in the language. At the same time, Zheng also believed that language learners often fail to fully understand the role of language in all aspects of our study and life, and therefore do not subconsciously improve their language skills. In communicative activities, they are not good at using virtual reality technology and augmented reality technology to enhance the common experience. Therefore, Zheng suggested that in our life, we must subconsciously temper our language skills and realize that it shapes the power of our lives and that we should extend the concept of intercultural competence to cross-cultural welfare, using virtual reality technology and language skills to enhance interpersonal benefits.

In the subsequent discussion between teachers and students, participants raised questions and exchanged views on ecolinguistics and second language acquisition, to which Zheng gave detailed answers.

Prof. Xiao summed up the significance of eoclinguistics and second language research and their application, and expressed gratitude for Prof. Zheng’s insightful ideas.

(Report by Qin Jianhua  Picture by Cen Haoxian)