AI, semiosis, and the future of language acquisition: A global approach to educational semiosphere
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33919/dasc.25.8.12Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence, Second Language Acquisition, Semiotic Analysis, Semiosphere, Quality EducationAbstract
This study explores the role of artificial intelligence in second language (L2) acquisition and the tremendous opportunities that it creates for personalized learning. As the 2030 EU agenda for quality education suggests, the emphasis of research and practice with AI-based approaches should be to foster the learning process. For this reason, the theoretical aspect of this research examines how AI can be situated in the L2 context for promoting personalized learning experiences. The study, specifically, evaluates the effectiveness of the current role of AI in L2, critically reviewing its reflection on the ethical implication of AI in education using a semiotic anal ysis. The objective is to understand how AI adapts to students’ cognitive and individual needs to be used as a methodology in learning frameworks. Additionally, the research raises two questions which address the role of AI in Barthes’s (1977) author-reader approach, proposing a semiosis-based learning model adapted from Eco’s encyclopaedia (1976, 1984) and Lotman’s concept of semiosphere (1985). This model aims to ensure deeper personalized learning by reversing traditional pedagogic approaches and analysing the role of each element (student, teacher, text, and AI) inside the educational sphere. In conclusion, the study highlights how AI-driven tools can be integrated into L2 education, facilitating communication, content creation, and engagement with new topics in an inclusive manner. Artificial Intelligence, Second Language Acquisition, Semiotic Analysis, Semiosphere, Quality Education ysis. The objective is to understand how AI adapts to students’ cognitive and individual needs to be used as a methodology in learning frameworks. Additionally, the research raises two questions which address the role of AI in Barthes’s (1977) author-reader approach, proposing a semiosis-based learning model adapted from Eco’s encyclopaedia (1976, 1984) and Lotman’s concept of semiosphere (1985). This model aims to ensure deeper personalized learning by reversing traditional pedagogic approaches and analysing the role of each element (student, teacher, text, and AI) inside the educational sphere. In conclusion, the study highlights how AI-driven tools can be integrated into L2 education, facilitating communication, content creation, and engagement with new topics in an inclusive manner.
References
Al-Jarf, R. 2022. Developing Students’ Global Awareness in EFL Reading and Speaking. South Asian Res J Art Lang Lit, Vol. 4, No. 1, 31–38. Available at: https://doi.org/10.36346/sarjall.2022.v04i01.005.
Appadurai, A. 2013. The Future as Cultural Fact. Essays on the Global Condition. London: Verso Books.
Argondizzo, C., G. Mansfield. 2022. “Research on Sustainable Development Literacy and Affective Learning and Teaching Actions”. Language Learning in Higher Education, Vol. 12, No. 2, 365–366. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1515/cercles-2022-2066.
Barthes, R. 1977 [1967]. The Death of the Author (transl. Stephen Heath). In Image, Music, Text. Hill and Wang, 142–148.
Betal, A. K. 2023. “Enhancing Second Language Acquisition through Artificial Intelligence (AI): Current Insights and Future Directions”. Journal for Research Scholars and Professionals of English Language Teaching, 7, 1–8. Available at: https://doi.org/10.54850/jrspelt.7.39.003.
Campbell, C. 2019. “Educating Semiosis: Foundational Concepts for an Ecological Edusemiotic”. Studies in Philosophy and Education, Vol. 38, 291–317. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11217-018-9617-4.
Constantinidou, D. A. 2023. “Language Education, Digital Citizenship, and Juri Lotman’s Semiosphere”. Digital Age in Semiotics & Communication, Vol. 6, No. 1, 173–184. Available at: https://doi.org/10.33919/dasc.23.6.9.
Cooley, M. 1987. Architect or Bee? The Human Price of Technology. The Hogarth Press.
De la Fuente, J. María. 2022. Education for Sustainable Development in Foreign Language Learning: Content-based Instruction in College-level Curricula. Taylor & Francis.
De Leonardis, O., M. Deriu. 2012. Il futuro nel quotidiano. Studi sociologici sulla capacità di aspirare. Milano: Egea.
Desogus, P. 2012. “The Encyclopedia in Umberto Eco’s Semiotics”. Semiotica, No. 192, 501–521. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1515/sem-2012-0068
Duggan-Haas, D. 2004. From the Ecosphere to the Edusphere: Problems in (mis) Managing Ecosystems and Edusystems. In Proceedings of the 2004 Complexity Science and Educational Research Conference, 55–82. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/241120947.
Eco, U. 1976. A Theory of Semiotics. Indiana University Press.
Eco, U. 1984. Semiotica e Filosofia del Linguaggio. Torino, Einaudi.
Freeman, D. E., Y. S. Freeman. 2004. Essential Linguistics: What You Need to Know to Teach Reading, ESL, Spelling, Phonics, and Grammar. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Gambino, A., J. Share. 2023. Critical Media Literacy and Second Language Acquisition. International Encyclopedia of Education, 76–85. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818630-5.07072-X.
Harish, V., R. Sharma, G. Rana and A. Nayyar. 2023. Artificial Intelligence in Sustainable Education: Benefits, Applications, Framework, and Potential Barriers. In The Role of Sustainability and Artificial Intelligence in Education Improvement. Chapman and Hall/CRC, 219–236.
Hartley, J., I. Ibrus and M. Ojamaa. 2020. On the Digital Semiosphere: Culture, Media and Science for the Anthropocene. Bloomsbury Publishing USA.
Jappy, T. 2020. Peirce’s Conception of Semiosis. In The Bloomsbury Companion to Contemporary Peircean Semiotics. Bloomsbury Publishing, 101–132. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.5040/9781350076143.ch-003.
Jasanoff, S. 2015. Future Imperfect: Science, Technology, and the Imaginations of Modernity. In Jasanoff, S., S.-H. Kim (eds.). Dreamscapes of Modernity: Sociotechnical Imaginaries and the Fabrication of Power. The University of Chicago Press, 1–33.
Kamalov, F., D. Santandreu Calonge and I. Gurrib. 2023. “New Era of Artificial Intelligence in Education: Towards a Sustainable Multifaceted Revolution”. Sustainability, Vol. 15, No. 16, 12451. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/su151612451.
Khreisat, M. N., D. Khilani, M. A. Rusho, E. A. Karkkulainen, A. C. Tabuena and A. D. Uberas. 2024. “Ethical Implications of AI Integration in Educational Decision Making: Systematic Review”. Educational Administration: Theory and Practice, Vol. 30, No. 5, 8521–8527.
Krashen, S. 1982. Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
Kulkarni, T., B. Toksha and P. Gupta. 2022. Applications of Artificial Intelligence in Learning Assessment. In Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education. CRC Press, 95–111.
Leicht, A., J. Heiss and W. J. Byun. 2018. In: Issues and Trends in Education for Sustainable Development, Vol. 5. UNESCO Publishing.
Li, Y.-D., G.-H. Ding and C.-Y. Zhang. 2021. “Effects of Learner-Centred Education on Academic Achievement: A Meta-Analysis”. Educational Studies, Vol. 50, No. 3, 285–298. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/03055698.2021.1940874.
Limna, P., T. Kraiwanit, K. Jangjarat, P. Klayklung and P. Chocksathaporn. 2023. “The Use of ChatGPT in the Digital Era: Perspectives on Chatbot Implementation”. Journal of Applied Research, Vol. 6, No. 1, 1–10. Available at: https://doi.org/10.37074/jalt.2023.6.1.32.
Lotman, J. M. 1985. La Semiosfera: L’asimmetria E Il Dialogo Nelle Strutture Pensanti. S. Salvestroni (a cura di). (1st ed.). Venezia: Marsilio.
Lotman, J. 1990. Universe of the Mind: A Semiotic Theory of Culture. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Mamlok, D. 2024. “Landscapes of Sociotechnical Imaginaries in Education: A Theoretical Examination of Integrating Artificial Intelligence in Education”. Foundations of Science, Vol. 30, No. 2, 529–540.
Marcuccio, M., M. E. Tassinari and V. Lo Turco. 2025. “Progettare e valutare con il supporto dell’intelligenza artificiale: elementi per un approccio critico all’uso dei chatbot”. Journal of Educational, Cultural and Psychological Studies, No. 30, 5–118. Available at: https://doi.org/10.7358/ecps-2024-030-marc.
Matsuda, N. 2021. “Teachable Agent as an Interactive Tool for Cognitive Task Analysis: A Case Study for Authoring an Expert Model”. International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Vol. 32, No. 1, 48–75. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-021-00265-z.
Means, A. 2018. Learning to Save the Future: Rethinking Education and Work in an Era of Digital Capitalism. Routledge.
Numerico, T. 2021. Big Data e Algoritmi: Prospettive Critiche. Carocci.
O’Halloran, K. L. 2022. “Matter, Meaning and Semiotics”. Visual Communication, Vol. 22, No. 1, 174–201. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/14703572221128881.
O’Neil, C. 2017. Armi di distruzione matematica. Bompiani.
Okonkwo, C. W., A. Ade-Ibijola. 2021. “Chatbots Applications in Education: A Systematic Review”. Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence, 2, 100033. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeai.2021.100033.
Pariser, E. 2011. The Filter Bubble: What the Internet is Hiding from You. Penguin UK.
Pedro, F., M. Subosa, A. Rivas and P. Valverde. 2019. Artificial Intelligence in Education: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12799/6533.
Pellegrino, V. 2019. Futuri possibili. Il domani per le scienze sociali di oggi. Milano: Ombre Corte.
Piaget, J. 1964. “Cognitive Development in Children: Development and Learning”. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, Vol. 2, 176-186. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.3660020306.
Pratama, M. P., R. Sampelolo and H. Lura. 2023. “Revolutionizing Education: Harnessing the Power of Artificial Intelligence for Personalized Learning”. Klasikal: Journal of Education, Language Teaching and Science, Vol. 5, No. 2, 350–357. Available at: https://doi.org/10.52208/klasikal.v5i2.877.
Pratschke, B. M. 2024. Generative AI and Education: Digital Pedagogies, Teaching Innovation and Learning Design. Springer Nature.
Sadin, E. 2019. Critica della ragione artificiale, trad. it. di F. Bononi.
Sandhu, R., H. K. Channi, D. Ghai, G. S. Cheema and M. Kaur. 2024. An Introduction to Generative AI tools for Education 2030. Integrating Generative AI in Education to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals, 1–28. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-2440-0.ch001.
Santangelo, A. 2013. Sociosemiotica dell’audiovisivo. Roma: Aracne.
Santangelo, A., A. Robiati. 2024. Immaginari del domani. Tra futures studies, semiotica e worldbuilding. Italian Institute for the Future.
Sarosa, M., M. Kusumawadhani, A. Suyono and Y. M. Azis. 2021. “The Effectiveness of Chat-bot as an Online Learning Method on Active and Reflective Learning Styles”. Multicultural Education, Vol. 7, No. 9, 92–100. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5484411.
Smutny, P., P. Schreiberova. 2020. “Chatbots for Learning: A Review of Educational Chatbots for the Facebook Messenger”. Computers & Education, 151, 103862. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2020.103862.
Stables, A. 2005. Living and Learning as Semiotic Engagement: A New Theory of Education. Edwin Mellen Press.
Tonkin, H. 2023. Introduction: Diversity of Language, Unity of Purpose. In Language and sustainable development (1–10). Cham: Springer International Publishing. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24918-1_1.
UNESCO. 2020. Education for Sustainable Development: A Roadmap. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France. Available at: https://doi.org/10.54675/YFRE1448.
Vygotsky, L. S. 1978. Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Williams, R. T. 2024. The Ethical Implications of Using Generative Chatbots in Higher Education. In Frontiers in Education, Vol. 8, 1331607. Frontiers Media SA. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2023.1331607.
Woo, J. H., H. Choi. 2021. Systematic Review for AI-based Language Learning Tools. ArXiv, arXiv:2111.04455. Available at: https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2111.04455.
Zygmunt, T. 2016. “Language Education for Sustainable Development”. Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education, Vol. 7, No, 1, 112-124. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1515/dcse-2016-0008.
