Combining interactive AI language tutors with digital linguistic resources for specialized language learning in the healthcare sector

Kick-off workshop

UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway  August 24-26, 2026


Venue

The kick-off workshop will be held at UiT The Arctic University of Norway (UiT Norges arktiske universitet), Breivika campus in Tromsø. It will take place in the SV- og HUM building, home to the Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education (Fakultet for humaniora, samfunnsvitenskap og lærerutdanning).

  • The event is hosted by UiT’s Department of Language and Culture (Institutt for språk og kultur).
  • The opening session includes presentations by guest researchers and is open to all (August 25, Tuesday, 8:30-12.00, B-1005 Auditorium).
  • Other sessions are internal, for project participants and invited AI and IT experts (meeting room A 2021).

Day 1: August 24, Monday

Morning session: Linguistic analysis in CARE (deliverables #2 and #3)

9.00-12.00 – SVHUM A 2021 Møterom

  • Content: Planning linguistic part of the project – Norwegian and Swedish constructions in healthcare language
  • Participants: Julia Prentice, Benjamin Lyngfelt (via Teams), Anna Endresen, Jorunn Juliussen Ingilæ, Janne Erikke Mjelle
  • Questions for discussion:
    • What kind of language data we will collect and analyze
    • How to make our analyses parallel, how to compare Norwegian and Swedish
    • How many constructions do we aim to collect and describe
    • Workflow, internal deadlines
    • Goals: articles and journals, conferences and workshops
    • How often we should meet for mutual update

13.00-13.45 - Lunch at Bazinga, lunch buffet for the team

Afternoon session: Chatbot development (deliverable #1)

13.45-14.00 – pre-workshop coffee & Norwegian waffles, SVHUM A 2021 Møterom

14.00-16.00 - SVHUM A 2021 Møterom

  • Content: focused discussion of the chatbot architecture. We present the idea and development plan followed by brainstorming discussion with the experts
  • Participants: Lei You, Hanne Løje, Jesper Kruse, Julia Prentice, Benjamin Lyngfelt (via Teams), Taras Andrushko, Lars Ailo Bongo, Olga Pelloni, Øystein Tveito, Rolf Andersen, Anna Endresen, Jorunn Juliussen Ingilæ, Janne Erikke Mjelle, Björn Lunquist, Marko Lukic, Odd Egil Johnsen
  • Questions for discussion:
    • existing approaches and best practices in chatbot-building,
    • type of data required,
    • role-play models,
    • existing speech-to-text models

Evening:

16.05-17.00 – a guided walk in Tromsø Arctic-Alpine Botanical Garden (part of UiT) or free time

18.00-20.00 – Reception & dinner at Árdna (the Sámi Cultural Pavilion on campus near the Labyrinth)


Day 2: August 25, Tuesday

Morning session: Opening of the project & guest talks (Tavla post) Auditorium B-1005, SV-og HUM-bygget

8:10-8:20

Coffee

(in the hall near B-1005)

8:30-8:40

Welcome

Gustav Jørgen Pedersen, Head of Department of Language and Culture (ISK) at UiT The Arctic University of Norway

8:40-9:00

Introduction about the CARE project

Anna Endresen, project leader, Department of Language and Culture at UiT, Norway

9:00-9:25

The context and the goals of the CARE project. Insights from the project “Language Mentor – Oral language support for pharmacy students with Norwegian as a second language” (2024-2026, UiT Talent in Education)

Janne E. MjelleAssociate Professor, Study Program Leader at the Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences at UiT, Norway

Jorunn Juliussen IngilæUniversity Lecturer in Norwegian as Second Language, Department of Language and Culture at UiT and Nettskolen i Troms, Norway

9:25-9:50

From Language Practice to Virtual Patients: Using Social Robots to Learn Medical Swedish

Olov EngwallProfessor in Speech Communication, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Sweden

9:50-10:10 Coffee break (second floor outside B-1005)
10:10-10:35

Svenska konstruktioner, Svenskt konstruktikon och svenska som andraspråk

Julia Prentice, Professor of Multilingualism & Deputy Head of Department, Department of Swedish, Multilingualism, Language Technology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden

10:35-11:00

Keep Learning in the Age of AI: Motivation, Feedback, and a Didactic Perspective

Hanne Løje, Associated Professor, Head of Studies for the Bachelor of Engineering program in Global Business Engineering at Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Head of Section for the Section Engineering Education Research at DTU Engineering Technology and Didactics

11:00-11:25

Mapping learners' needs with Q methodology

Jesper Kruse, Associate Professor at the Department of Engineering Technology and Didactics at Technical University of Denmark (DTU)

11:20-11:50

Governing Who May Redefine Success in LLM Agents

Lei You, Assistant Professor in Applied Mathematics, Department of Engineering Technology and Didactics at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU)

12:00-13.00 Lunch for the project team - Bazinga

Afternoon session: Teamwork

13:00-16:00 - meeting room SVHUM A 2021

  • 13.00-13.30 – acronym issue, planning future workshops
  • 13.30-14.00 – project budget (Tor Gisle Lorentzen, research advisor)
  • 14.00-14.30 – workflow, deliverables
  • 14.30-14.45 kaffe & tea (in the same room)
  • 14.45-16.00 – chatbot design, roles and useful scenarios for a role-play chatbot; other issues

Evening:

16:00-17.50 - Bus to downtown, walk in downtown and visit to the Polar Museum (part of UiT, around 16.40-17.40) or free time

18.00-20.00 - Dinner at the restaurant “Maskinverkstedet” – 2-minute-walk from the Polar Museum


Day 3: August 26, Wednesday

8:30-9.00 - Coffee at the meeting room SVHUM A 2021

Morning session: Teamwork

9:00-12:00 -SVHUM A 2021

  • Other issues

12:00-13.00 - Lunch for the project team - Bazinga, lunch buffet

From 13:00 - Going to the airport and home