Between April 27 and May 3, 2025, Dr. Ivana Pondelíková and Assoc. Prof. Katarína Welnitzová participated in an Erasmus+ mobility at the Universidade da Madeira in Funchal, Portugal. The aim of the mobility was to deepen professional competences in the field of cultural and language studies, with a focus on innovative didactic approaches, the method of design thinking, and the use of artificial intelligence in education. Particular attention was also given to the application of CAT tools and machine translation in the context of foreign language instruction.
The mobility program included a series of expert lectures, discussions, and hands-on workshops. Assoc. Prof. Welnitzová delivered presentations on Primary Factors Affecting MT Quality, MT and AI as Modern Translation Technologies, and Using MT and AI in CAT Tools in Different Language Combinations (English–Slovak, English–Portuguese). Dr. Pondelíková gave a lecture titled Barriers to Intercultural Communication and led a workshop entitled Design Thinking as a Good Practice in X-Learning, which focused on fostering students’ creativity, digital identity, and presentation skills.
As part of the Humanities Week, held on April 30, 2025, Dr. Pondelíková gave an invited lecture titled Exploring the Efficacy of AI Text Tools in Enhancing Specialized Communication Skills in English Language Learning, while Assoc. Prof. Welnitzová contributed with her presentation MT and AI as Modern Translation. These lectures were part of the project Artificial Intelligence as VET Teacher Assistant (Erasmus+ KA220 Cooperation Partnerships, project no. 2024-1-HU01-KA220-VET-000253387), and were aimed at promoting the use of AI tools for the development of professional language competences in vocational and lifelong education.
The Humanities Week was further enriched by the participation of distinguished guests. Dr. Malavika Shetty from Boston University delivered a lecture on Critical Language Awareness (CLA) and AI in the Writing Classroom; Prof. Katarzyna Papaja from the University of Silesia (Katowice, Poland) presented on CLIL in the European Higher Education; and Dr. Svetlana Kurtes focused on Reflection as a Teaching and Assessment Method in Higher Education Contexts.
During their stay, Dr. Pondelíková and Assoc. Prof. Welnitzová developed closer cooperation with the mobility supervisor, Dr. Svetlana Kurtes. They attended her lectures, toured the university, and participated in the accompanying cultural program, which contributed to strengthening academic collaboration. Overall, the mobility significantly enriched the professional profiles of the participating educators, provided new impulses for educational innovation, and enhanced international partnerships between the involved universities.
