Kellogg and AI Learning Lectures: Leveraging LANGUAGE: LLMs as Tools for Learning

This event is part of a series, “Kellogg and AI Learning Lectures”, which is organised by Kellogg College and the AI Competency Centre at Oxford. Open to all Oxford University staff and students, these sessions are designed to boost understanding of developments in AI and build confidence in using emerging technologies.

While people commonly view generative AI as an idea generator, one of its greatest strengths is its exceptional language capabilities that can transform how we communicate across linguistic boundaries.

Drawing from her experience in linguistics and academic English teaching, Kelly Webb-Davies, who is an AI Consultant at the AI Competency Centre, will show how AI can be used to develop ideas authentically in a person’s natural voice – whether informal, multilingual, or spoken – and then effectively translate these into formal academic and professional styles. This “digital translanguaging” approach creates inclusive educational environments where diverse linguistic identities are valued rather than suppressed. It is part of a vision where learning assessments in the classroom can focus on students’ abilities to develop ideas, instead of enforcing rigid language standards. Educators can also use AI to efficiently create tailored resources for varied linguistic and neurodiverse needs, harnessing AI’s linguistic potential, not to replace authentic expression, but to enhance and deepen it.