ebulletin: May 2008
The monthly Subject Centre e-bulletin gives information on events, news items and newly available resources. Register if you would like to receive notification of future e-bulletins via email.
General interest
Date: 29 January, 2009 - 30 January, 2009
Location: Avenue Campus, University of Southampton
Event type: Symposium
Date: 11 September, 2008
Location: King's College London, Open Learning Centre, K-1.07-2, First basement, Strand building
Event type: Workshop
Date: 9 June, 2008
Location: University of Bristol, School of Chemistry, Lecture Theatre 4
Event type: Workshop
Date: 15 May, 2008
Location: Pencerrig Gardens Hotel Llandrindod Road Builth Wells Powys, Wales, LD2 3TF
Event type: Seminar
Building on the Higher Education Academy commentary on Welsh Learning and Teaching Strategies 2004-05, (Sylwebaeth yr Academi Addysg Uwch ar Strategaethau Dysgu ac Addysgu Sefydliadol Cymru 2004-05) the Academy has been invited by HEFCW to review the new three year Welsh Learning and Teaching Strategies 2007/08 - 2009/10. The review, highlighting effective practice and emergent themes in Welsh institutions, will be published in May 2008. This event, through the use of case studies, will highlight and provide an opportunity to share effective and successful practice and reflect on emergent learning and teaching themes identified in the strategies. It will also look at the role of leadership in implementing the strategies. It will be of interest to all staff and student leaders involved with the learning and teaching development community in Wales. For more information, please see the conference website.
These materials are a course pack commissioned by the Subject Centre for use by education developers (workshop mode) or by individual staff (online mode). The materials provide reflective activities designed to engage teachers with some of the key issues in working with international students and practical ideas for ways in which these can be addressed. They will be of particular interest to new staff or anyone new to working with international students. Learning outcomes include; increased awareness of areas of the UK learning experience that may present challenges for international students, Strategies for improving the learning experience of international students.
Marta Dados, a second year French, Spanish and English student at the University of Glasgow, is a runner up in the Subject Centre's undergraduate student essay competition 2008.
The winner of the Subject Centre's undergraduate student essay competition 2008 was Siobhan Tebbs Wesley, a final year student studying a Combined Honours in Arts (Arabic, French, Russian and Sociology) at Durham University.
Date: 2 July, 2008
Location: University of Dundee, Tower Building, Perth Road, Room 1.37 Baxter Suite
Event type: Workshop
Date: 10 June, 2008
Location: University of Cumbria, School of Business and Enterprise, 4/5 Paternoster Row, P101 Cathedral Room
Event type: Workshop
Date: 26 June, 2008
Location: University of Portsmouth, Park Building, School of Languages and Area Studies, rooms 2.07, 3.14, 3.15 and 3.16
Event type: Workshop
LLAS issues an annual call for bids for pedagogic / action research projects in priority areas. LLAS welcomes applications for our guest speaker fund and for travel bursaries.
Caroline Smith, a final year Linguistics student at the University of Cambridge, was a runner up in the Subject Centre's undergraduate student essay competition 2008.
Languages
Date: 21 November, 2008
Location: The Leeds Humanities Research Institute, University of Leeds
Event type: Workshop
Date: 26 September, 2008
Location: University of Manchester
Event type: Conference
Date: 18 September, 2008
Location: The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, Christodoulou Meeting Room 15 (CMR 15)
Event type: Workshop
Date: 8 July, 2008 - 9 July, 2008
Location: University of York
Event type: Conference
Date: 21 May, 2008
Location: Institution of Engineering and Technology, 2 Savoy Place, London WC2R
Event type: Other
Funded by the Department of Innovation, Skills and Universities under the Gateways into the Professions Development Fund, the Gateways into Languages project aims to develop and highlight good practice inthe design and delivery of profession-specific language and intercultural skills curriculum models as well as raising awareness among potential entrants within Engineering and the Built Environment professions of the value of language and intercultural skills in their future careers. For more information, please see the conference website.
Linguistics
Date: 8 July, 2008 - 9 July, 2008
Location: University of York
Event type: Conference
Date: 20 June, 2008
Location: Essex University
Event type: Seminar
Date: 30 May, 2008
Location: CILT, London SE1
Event type: Seminar
Area Studies
Date: 21 November, 2008
Location: The Leeds Humanities Research Institute, University of Leeds
Event type: Workshop
Date: 8 July, 2008 - 9 July, 2008
Location: University of York
Event type: Conference
Funded by the Embassy of the United States of America, Discover American Studies is a free interactive CD-ROM designed to promote American Studies to students in schools and further education colleges in the UK. The CD was launched in Edinburgh at the annual conference of the British Association for American Studies on 29 March 2008. Based on the Why Study Languages? CD it contains presentations, essays, video clips and interactive features to demonstrate the benefits of studying for a degree in American Studies. The CD is being distributed to American Studies departments and members of the British Association for American Studies.
Other news
Mike Kelly (Director of the Subject Centre for Lanuages, Linguistics and Area Studies) has been invited by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) to submit an essay on the value of languages research to life in the UK. This is part of a series of essays that the AHRC is commissioning.
Teaching French grammar post A-level, particularly to 1st year undergraduate students, is currently being reviewed by staff in the School of Languages and Social Sciences at Aston University. The aim is to create a standalone grammar module in the second semester of the first year. Dr Graeme Hayes (Director of French Studies) would like to learn about grammar teaching practice in other institutions and invites colleagues to contact him with, for example, brief descriptions of what seems to work (and what seems to not work) and, if relevant, the role of research evidence in these choices. The findings will be reported on the LLAS website and the Francofil discussion list. Please contact g.a.hayes@aston.ac.uk if you are interested in sharing your practice.
The Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) invites proposals for projects to review course design and validation processes, and the ways these are supported and informed by technology, in order to transform learning opportunities to address an identified issue or challenge of strategic importance to the institution involved. Funding of up to £400,000 per project is available with projects expected to last for just under four years. JISC has committed £5 million to this work and expects to funds up to 12 projects. Because of the need for institutions to identity issues or challenges relevant to their own context only one project per institution will be funded. For further information, visit the JISC's website.
