Use of technologies and online presence is now almost inevitable in language learning. The practice of virtual exchanges (VEs) has been receiving a lot of attention among educators at all levels over the past years. This research paper sheds light on 13 VEs carried out in pre-service teacher education in the last six years and proposes its own VE design based on recommendations from the literature with the future perspective of designing a specific VE for the research. The aim of the systematic review was at first to determine the exchange and interaction set-ups and the potential gains in the terms of pre-service teachers’ skills development. Afterwards, we identified areas for improvement and proposed our design of a VE between pre-service teachers of English in Slovakia and Turkey. Some of the expected contributions of the proposed VE design are development of a linguistic and intercultural communicative competence, digital literacy, and other competences relevant for development of VEs.

This study focuses on the competency structure factors of elementary school English teachers under China’s new curriculum standards, aiming to reveal the core competencies that teachers should possess in the context of education in the new era. Through the comprehensive application of qualitative interviews and quantitative questionnaire survey methods, this study provides an in-depth analysis of the competency structure of primary English teachers. It was found that the competency structure of elementary school English teachers is mainly composed of six dimensions: professionalism, personality traits, teaching ability, student views, teaching organization strategy and research ability. These dimensions work together to influence teachers’ teaching effectiveness and students’ learning effectiveness. The study also found that there were significant differences in the competency characteristics of elementary school English teachers across gender, teaching experience and educational qualifications. In general, this study provides a theoretical basis and practical guidance for the professional development of elementary school English teachers, which can help to improve the quality of teachers’ teaching and promote the comprehensive development of students.

This study explored how facilitation skills—defined as instructional techniques that accurately convey core messages in a trusting relationship and encourage self-directed learning participation among adult learners—affect the effectiveness of learning. The research focused on adult learners enrolled in lifelong education programs at seven universities, including general and vocational colleges in Busan. It aimed to examine the relationships between instructors’ facilitation skills, learner engagement, and learning outcomes, as well as the mediating effect of engagement on these relationships. A total of 213 valid survey responses were analyzed from an initial 215 responses, excluding 2 unsuitable entries. The findings are summarized as follows. First, facilitation skills were found to partially influence learner engagement. Second, learner engagement was shown to affect learning outcomes. Third, facilitation skills were found to have a partial effect on learning outcomes. Fourth, learner engagement partially mediated the relationship between facilitation skills and learning outcomes. Based on these results, this study is expected to contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between facilitation skills and learning outcomes in adult learners, providing practical guidelines for enhancing effectiveness in various educational contexts.

The purpose of the current study is to examine the mediating role of intercultural communicative competence on the relationship between teaching of English language and learning at Chinese higher vocational colleges. The convenience sampling technique was used to collect data from 668 teachers, teaching English language subjects in different public and private Chinese higher vocational colleges. Smart partial least squares-structural equation modeling on SmartPLS software version 4 was used to test the hypotheses. The result revealed the direct effect of English language teaching (ELT) is not significant on English language learning (ELL). However, the intercultural communicative competences (ICC) have been tested and proved to be a potential mediator between English language teaching and learning. Because the indirect effect of ELT on ELL is positive and significant through mediator ICC. Therefore, based on the findings of this study, it can be concluded that the inclusion of intercultural communication ability is a crucial component in the vocational education of college students. Policymakers should be cautious about promoting and expanding the availability of cultural teaching and learning across demographic conditions (e.g., linguistic and ethnic diversity, age, and gender) and various levels of language proficiency. In accordance with the effects of teacher education and professional development programs, the implementation of ICC content necessitates a harmonization of pedagogical approaches and assessment practices across designated levels in order to effectively achieve educational objectives. To promote ICC in English language education, there must be clear guidelines and communication to school leaders, educators, and administrators regarding the necessity and goals of cultural integration.

The objective of this work was to analyze the effect of the use of ChatGPT in the teaching-learning process of scientific research in engineering. Artificial intelligence (AI) is a topic of great interest in higher education, as it combines hardware, software and programming languages to implement deep learning procedures. We focused on a specific course on scientific research in engineering, in which we measured the competencies, expressed in terms of the indicators, mastery, comprehension and synthesis capacity, in students who decided to use or not ChatGPT for the development and fulfillment of their activities. The data were processed through the statistical T-Student test and box-and-whisker plots were constructed. The results show that students’ reliance on ChatGPT limits their engagement in acquiring knowledge related to scientific research. This research presents evidence indicating that engineering science research students rely on ChatGPT to replace their academic work and consequently, they do not act dynamically in the teaching-learning process, assuming a static role.

As the population’s demand for food continues to increase, aquaculture is positioned as a productive activity that provides high-quality protein. Aquaculture activity is characterized by its socio-economic impact, the generation of jobs, its contribution to food, and constant growth worldwide. However, in the face of threats of competition, producers must quickly adapt to market needs and innovate. Given this, this research aims to analyze the impact of the knowledge absorption capacity with the adoption of innovations by aquaculture producers in the Mezquital Valley in Hidalgo, Mexico. The methodological strategy was carried out through structural equation modeling using partial least squares and correlation tests. The findings show that knowledge absorption capacities explain 77.8% of the innovations carried out in aquaculture farms. Both variables maintain a medium-high correlation; the more significant the absorption capacity, the greater the innovation.