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OPEN CALL for papers

Thematic/Special issue on Textbooks in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

Forthcoming in the international open access journal Nordic Journal of Language Teaching and Learning (NJLTL), Vol.15, No 1, 2027

Editors: Karen Bauer, Camilla Bjørke, Birgitta Hellqvist, Beate Lindemann, Astrid Mus Rasmussen, Débora Rottenberg

 

Textbooks continue to play a central role in the teaching and learning of foreign languages. In an era shaped by digital transformation, increasing linguistic diversity, and growing interest in learner-centered approaches, textbooks are being reimagined across educational levels and contexts.

This special issue focuses on the development, use, and critical evaluation of textbooks in foreign language education, particularly within the Nordic countries but with relevance beyond. We are mostly interested in research that focuses on languages other than English (LOTE).

We invite contributions from researchers, educators, and materials developers who wish to explore the pedagogical, ethical, cultural, and technological dimensions of contemporary textbook design and use.

We welcome a wide range of perspectives addressing, but not limited to, the following questions:

  • What role do textbooks currently play in language teaching and learning across different educational contexts? 
  • What principles guide the development of textbooks in language learning?
  • How are language, identity, and culture represented in textbooks, and what impact might this have on learners?
  • In what ways do textbooks reflect or fail to reflect cultural and linguistic diversity?
  • What ethical considerations arise in the authorship, publishing and distribution of textbooks for language learning?
  • How might textbooks support or hamper learner autonomy and critical thinking?
  • What are suitable methodologies for evaluating foreign language textbooks?
  • How do textbooks authors adjust to digital and multimodal learning environments? 
  • What innovations are emerging in textbook design (e.g., integration of AI, gamification, adaptive learning)?
  • What might future textbooks in language learning look like, e.g. ten years from now?
  • How can textbooks remain relevant in an age of open educational resources and AI-driven tools?

Articles may be written in Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, English, French, German, and Spanish.

We accept contributions focusing on textbooks in foreign and second languages (preferably other ones than English) and for all educational levels. We are particularly interested in articles on the intersection between textbooks and language pedagogy. 

The Nordic Journal of Language Teaching and Learning has two sections:

The first section contains double-blind, peer-reviewed articles presenting a theoretical framework and/or results of empirical research. The typical length of an article is between 5000 and 7000 words, in addition to an abstract of 150-250 words.

The second section features shorter articles of general interest, such as contributions from educators and students about hands-on experiences in the classroom, book reviews, opinion pieces, lectures, and professional development reports. The contributions in this section are editorially reviewed and are not sent for external review. Items for the second section are normally under 2000 words. NJLTL accepts opinion pieces, responses to articles, and statements about current events and government policies of relevance to the journal’s readership. The editors welcome not least contributions from practitioners, such as teachers and textbook authors, in Scandinavian languages if preferred.

Please, let us know if you would be interested in submitting an article. Send us a few words about the key ideas of such a planned article (max. 100 words) with a working title by 1 October 2025 to: Beate.Lindemann@uit.no .

If your article is intended for the peer-reviewed section, your abstract should present your research question(s), theoretical framework, and – if applicable – the methodological approach.

For further information, see the information on the website: https://journal.uia.no/index.php/NJLTL

Important dates:

  • Call published: 15 June 2025
  • Submission deadline for an expression of interest: 1 October 2025
  • Submission deadline for full articles: 1 March 2026
  • Peer-review sent to authors: 1 August 2026
  • Articles revised and sent to editors: 1 November 2026
  • Thematic issue published at the beginning of 2027