Biography
Dr. Di Liu is Associate Professor of Instruction in the Department of Teaching and Learning. He is Principal Investigator of a four-year, $1.88 million project funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (2026–2029), which develops AI-powered multi-agent classroom simulations to prepare preservice elementary mathematics teachers. He is also Principal Investigator on a National Science Foundation ACCESS computing allocation for benchmarking large language model student-agent architectures.
His research bridges applied linguistics and artificial intelligence in education, addressing the complex and dynamic nature of second language development and the design and evaluation of AI systems for teacher preparation. He has published in the International Journal of Bilingualism, International Journal of Applied Linguistics, Language Awareness, and the Journal of Second Language Pronunciation, as well as in the proceedings of the Association for Computational Linguistics. He is an author of Phonetics in Language Teaching (Cambridge University Press) and serves on the editorial board of Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.
Dr. Liu received his doctorate from Boston University and holds an MS in Information Science and Technology. His work earned the College AACTE's 2025 Best Practice Award for Innovative Use of Technology, and he serves on AACTE's Programmatic Advisory Committee on Innovation and Technology. He coordinates the Accomplished Teaching MSEd program and EDUC 0815 Language in Society.
Research Interests
- Artificial Intelligence
- Language Comprehension/Development
- Teacher Education/Development
Courses Taught
Number | Name | Level |
|---|---|---|
TESL 4442 | Strategies for Teaching English as an Additional Language | Undergraduate |
TESL 4443 | Teaching English World-Wide | Undergraduate |
TESL 5611 | Applied Language Study I: Phonology and the Lexicon | Graduate |
TESL 5612 | Applied Language Study II: Grammar, Morphology and Classroom Discourse | Graduate |
TESL 5614 | Current Approaches to Teaching English Language Learners | Graduate |
TESL 5614 | Current Approaches to Teaching English Language Learners | Graduate |
TESL 5615 | Teaching English in a Global Context | Graduate |
TESL 5618 | Second Language Development | Graduate |
EDUC 0815 | Language in Society | Undergraduate |
EDUC 5255 | Tech in Classrooms: TPCK | Graduate |
ILT 5287 | ILT: Practicum in Instructional Technology | Graduate |
Featured Publications
- Liu, D., Jones, T., & Reed, M. (2022). Phonetics in language teaching. Cambridge University Press.
- Ahn, J., Verma, R., Lou, R., Liu, D., Zhang, R., & Yin, W. (2024). Large language models for mathematical reasoning: Progresses and challenges. In Proceedings of the 18th Conference of the European Chapter of the Association for Computational Linguistics: Student Research Workshop (pp. 225–237). Association for Computational Linguistics.
- Liu, D. (2021). Prosody transfer failure despite cross-language similarities: Evidence in favor of a complex dynamic system approach in pronunciation teaching. Journal of Second Language Pronunciation, 7(1), 38–61.
Selected Publications
Liu, D. (2026). L2 intonation learning. In C. A. Chapelle (Ed.), The encyclopedia of applied linguistics (2nd ed.). John Wiley & Sons.
Liu, D. (2025). Restructuring dynamic mapping of L1 resources in L2 development with bilingual metacognitive instruction: The case of sentence stress. International Journal of Bilingualism. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069251393089
Liu, D. (2025). Toward Listening 4.0: Technology-based instruction, research, and assessment. In M. Reed & J. M. Levis (Eds.), The handbook of second language listening (Chapter 25). John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781394312375.ch25
Liu, D., Lai, C., Lin, R., & Jin, T. (2024). Pre-service teachers' technology integration in pronunciation instruction: Professional identity and value beliefs. International Journal of Applied Linguistics.
Liu, D., McGregor, A., Zielinski, B., Reed, M., & Meyers, C. (2024). ESL teachers' metalanguage as evidence of their metalinguistic knowledge of the English intonation system. Language Awareness, 1–21.
Liu, D., & Reed, M. (2021). Exploring the complexity of the L2 intonation system: An acoustic and eye-tracking study. Frontiers in Communication, 6, Article 627316.
Liu, D. (2022). Preparing Second Language Educators to Teach Pronunciation with Technology. In S. McCrocklin (Ed.), Technological Resources for Second Language Pronunciation Learning and Teaching Research-Based Approaches. Lexington Books. Retrieved from https://rowman.com/