Anaheim University held its annual Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) residential session from March 22 to March 25, 2025, welcoming Ed.D. and MA in TESOL students to Irvine, California for four days of intensive academic engagement. The AU TESOL residential session followed the March 18-21 TESOL 2025 International Convention & Expo in nearby Long Beach, California, allowing students to attend both the conference and residential session back to back. 

The session featured distinguished applied linguists and Anaheim University Senior Professors Dr. David Nunan, Founding Dean of the Graduate School of Education, and Dr. Rod Ellis, Vice President for Academic Affairs who have taught at AU TESOL residential sessions for over a quarter of a century. Together, they led interactive workshops, research presentations, and collaborative discussions centered on current topics in language education.

Key sessions included:

• Translanguaging and designing research studies (Dr. Rod Ellis)

• Poster presentations and research plan development (Dr. David Nunan)

• Debates on task-based vs. task-supported language teaching, the use of L1 in the classroom, and key controversies in language research

• Student-led presentations of original research and open forums for academic inquiry.

The residential program fostered scholarly exchange and mentorship, reinforcing Anaheim University’s commitment to developing the next generation of TESOL professionals through practice-based research and global perspectives.