AATP Panel at AIS 2026 Conference
5-8 Aug, 2026 - Utrecht, Netherlands

 

AATP is organizing a panel at the Association of Iranian Studies (AIS) 2026 Conference in Utrecht, Netherlands.

Teaching Persian in a Changing World Order:
Language Education, Cultural Understanding, and the Strategic Role of Language

 

The panel will include three paper presentations and explore how Persian language education adapts to the shifting global landscape through innovation, advocacy, and the use of emerging technologies. Persian has long been recognized as a language of strategic and cultural importance, yet recent geopolitical changes, funding reductions, and technological disruption have redefined what it means to teach and sustain less commonly taught languages in higher education.

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Panel Organizer: Dr. Peyman Nojoumian

Panel Discussant: Dr. Nahal Akbari, University of Maryland

 

Presenters:

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1. Persian as a Strategic Language in the Age of Immersive Technology: Building Cultural Diplomacy and Educational Resilience

   Dr. Peyman Nojoumian, University of Southern California
    

2. Sustaining Persian Language Programs: Addressing Students’ Needs, Advocacy and Institutional Challenges

   Dr. Anousha Sedighi, Portland State University
    

3. Reimagining Persian Language Teaching: Technology, Multimodal Pedagogy, and Cultural Engagement in a Changing World
   Dr. Neda Sahranavard, University of California, Irvine
    

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