Archived ebulletin: January 2007

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This bulletin contains information on the following:

1. Subject Centre activities
2. Subject Centre publications
3. Events, call for papers, news from other institutions or organisations
4. Policy- Dearing review into Languages at Key Stage 4

1. Subject Centre activities

1.1 Pedagogy and translation

26 January 2007
University of Salford

Following the successful event hosted by the University of Swansea in January 2006, the University of Salford is hosting a second event on 26 January 2007 on the theme of Pedagogy and Translation.

The themes include:

• translation project management;
• developing translator autonomy;
• the role of accreditation bodies and professional associations in improving quality in translation and interpreting;
• liaison interpreting as a language learning tool;
• National Occupational Standards in Translation
• elearning for translators

To view the programme and register, please go to our events page.

1.2 E-learning 2 day conference

1-2 February 2007
University of Southampton

LLAS, with the support of JISC funding, is organising this 2-day event. Each day will cover different themes so delegates may choose to attend one or both days. The conference will focus on the learner and how the latest technologies impact on the learning experience. Themes will be: student e-learning experience, mobile learning, Web 2.0 technologies, sharing and re-using learning resources (learning objects and repositories). Keynote speaker: Professor Grainne Conole, The Open University. To register, please go to our events page.

1.3 Area Studies and the globalised world conference

27 February 2007
British Library Conference Centre, London

LLAS has joined with the British Library (Eccles Centre), the UK Council for Area Studies Associations (UKCASA) and the Canadian High Commission in London to organise this high profile conference. Keynote speakers are Lord Giddens (London School of Economics) and John Ralston Saul, Co-chair of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship. There is a charge of £27.00 to attend the conference. A full programme and downloadable registration form is available at our events page.

1.4 Preparing our students for the Languages professions: Implications for the curriculum

Friday 9 March 2007
Woburn House, Tavistock Square, London

This conference takes a broader perspective on the languages professions. It will consist of presentations on innovative university language programmes, which are designed to prepare students for the world of work, as well as papers from a range of employers who will highlight their needs and the graduate skills, which are of particular importance. To register, please go to our events page.

1.5 Digital language labs: Exploring good practice

Thursday 15 March 2007
Brunei Gallery, SOAS, London

The Centre of Excellence in Multimedia Language Learning at the University of Ulster, is delighted to announce that it is organising a Symposium entitled: Digital language labs: Exploring good practice.

This one-day event, assisted by the Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies, will take place at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS at the University of London on 15 March 2007. It will provide an opportunity for colleagues to critically explore pedagogy-led use of digital labs in language learning and to share best practice.

The closing date for submission of abstracts has now passed. For more information, including a provisional programme, please go to our events page.

1.6 Postgraduate conference: Identity formation

4 April 2007
University of Manchester

This Subject Centre sponsored Lecture will be the first ever conference to incorporate all the departments in the Faculty of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures at the University of Manchester. This exciting inaugural event aims to be all inclusive and embrace all modern foreign languages; it will treat the notion of Identity Formation in literature, art, film and media studies. Full details, including a call for papers, are available on the University of Manchester website. For further details, please go to our events page.

1.7 Linking teaching and research in Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies

Tuesday 10 July 2007
Avenue Campus, University of Southampton

Cost £40 (£20 for postgraduate students) Debates about the links between teaching and research in UK higher education have intensified in recent years, as both teaching and research have come under increased pressure for performance, accountability and assessment. Increasingly, institutions and individual staff are being defined as led by either teaching or research. And the link between research and teaching is by turns derided - and hotly defended.

Keynote speakers:

• Clare Mar-Molinero, Head of Modern Languages, School of Humanities, University of Southampton
• Alan Jenkins, Westmininster Institute, Oxford Brooks University

For further details, please go to our events page.

1.8 Routes into Languages programme

Call for bids for research projects
Thank you to those who submitted bids before Christmas. We will be notifying all bidders at the end of January

Calls for bids for regional consortia and national networks for translation and interpreting
The call for bids will be issued in the second half of January. It will be placed on our website at: www.llas.ac.uk/routes The deadline for submission of bids for both the regional consortia and national networks is likely to be the end of April 2007.

For the latest information about the Routes into Languages programme (including frequently asked questions), go to our Routes into Languages page.

1.9 Student Award 2007

Closing date: 16 March 2007

The Subject Centre is giving students the chance to offer their opinions and experiences in a 1000-word essay entitled What advice would you give to students starting your course? This opportunity is open to anyone studying Languages, Linguistics or Area Studies as part of their HE course. There is a £250 prize for the winning entry, which will be featured on the Subject Centre website. For further details see our news page.

If you would like some competition postcards and/or posters, please contact:llas@soton.ac.uk.

1.10 Funding available - mini-projects

Deadline: 10 February 2007

The Subject Centre is pleased to announce a new round of funding available for mini-projects in the following Subject Areas:

• Area Studies Literary
• Cultural and Political Studies (as part of a modern languages programme)
• Theoretical Linguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Psycholinguistics
• Phonetics and Phonology
• Computational Linguistics

Bids of up to £2,000 are invited to support materials development, course evaluation, action / pedagogic research, or innovation in teaching in the above subject areas. Successful bidders will present their project outcomes at a Subject Centre seminar and via the Subject Centre website. Expressions of interest giving an outline of the proposed project, budget requested and expected outcomes should be sent to: llas@soton.ac.uk by 10 February 2007.

1.11 Departmental visits

The Subject Centre is happy to announce that it is now offering a new service to departments in Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies. Members of Subject Centre staff are available to visit individual departments on request. For a menu of visit options see our visits page.

2. Subject Centre publications

2.1 Hard going but worth it: a snapshot of attitudes to reading among languages undergraduates.

This report presents information on students' pre-university experience of reading in the foreign language; their attitudes to reading in both their first language and the foreign language and the difficulties experienced with foreign language reading. To order your free copy, please go to our publications page.

2.2 Outreach in Modern Languages: a DfES funded report mapping cross-sector collaboration.

This report presents the findings of a DfES-funded mapping project into cross-sector collaboration between universities and schools in England. Its many examples of good practice and detailed case studies will be a useful resource for higher education staff and school teachers involved in language outreach activities. To order your free copy, please go to our publications page.

2.3 Understanding and Developing Good Practice by John Klapper

The Subject Centre is pleased to offer the above book for sale at a special price of £17.00 + £2.00 for postage and packing. If you would like to receive a copy, please email llas@soton.ac.uk.

2.4 Why Study Languages? Subject Centre CD

There are still copies of this CD designed to excite, educate and encourage young people to continue with their language learning in KS4 and beyond. The CD is divided into two parts: 'The Language Lab' is aimed at pupils in KS3 and KS4 and 'Why study languages' is aimed at pupils in KS4 and post-16. There are quizzes, powerpoint presentations and much much more AND it comes with its own poster! Further information about the CD and ordering procedure can be found on the Why study languages page.

2.5 A wider perspective and more options: investigating the longer term employability of humanities graduates

Copies of this report are still available. To order your free copy, please go to our publications page.

2.6 Free poster about the Subject Centre available!

This poster introduces the LLAS Subject Centre and briefly explains its key activities. It would be a colourful addition to any staff notice board. Click here if you would like to order a free poster for your Department or Faculty. This offer applies to UK HEIs only.

3. Events, call for papers, news from other institutions or organisations

3.1 Other events

Please visit our other events page for events, calls for papers, news which are not organised by LLAS Subject Centre.

4. Policy

4.1 Dearing review into languages policy at KS4

In September 2006, Alan Johnson asked Lord Dearing to advise him on how a recovery from the falling take-up of Languages at Key Stage 4 might be achieved. Lord Dearings interim report has now been published. Visit our news page for links and more information.

We would be grateful if your would forward this bulletin to colleagues and relevant mailing lists. Please do not hesitate to contact the Subject Centre if you have any queries regarding this bulletin.

Sue Nash
Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies
Modern Languages
School of Humanities
University of Southampton
Highfield
Southampton SO17 1BJ

tel: 023 8059 4814
fax: 023 8059 4815
email: llas@soton.ac.uk

A Subject Centre of the Higher Education Academy