Projects by theme :: 'All'
Southampton Feedback Champions
LLAS is launching a new initiative. This project aims to discover and share good practice in the delivery and use of feedback by staff and students
7 February 2014
Hello! Home of European Language Learning Opportunities
“The limits of my language means the limits of my world” – Ludwig Wittgenstein
Foreign language skills expand worlds, open doors to new cultures and contribute to social cohesion, mobility and employability. Yet, only half of all Europeans speak a foreign language, while only a quarter speaks a second foreign language (Eurobarometer 386, 2012).
Hello! empowers learners of all ages to better understand the benefits of language learning – and to find and compare language courses of any language taught in Europe – while providing language institutes with an excellent way to centrally present their offers.
3 October 2013The XML project: developing digital literacy in modern languages
This project is funded by the Higher Education Academy (HEA) looking at ways to develop digital literacy within different discipline areas. The project will see students creating Xerte learning objects as assessed materials for their course in Spanish language and content. It will also offer bursaries to all students in Modern Languages, to create materials in preparation for their Year Abroad. Students will learn about the tool, Xerte, and about copyright and metadata implications for the creation of OERs. They will then act as ambassadors and tutors to other staff and students wishing to engage with open practice and Xerte throughout the University of Southampton, via the existing successful Digital Champions (http://www.diglit.soton.ac.uk/champions/) scheme, which sees students acting as roving mentors/tutors for the use of technology in the institution.
3 September 2013iTunes and You
In the iTunes and You project, we propose to take existing disparate material, which has been published as open content for research and teaching by humanities staff at the University of Southampton, and work with the university marketing department to repackage it as learning modules in the form of iTunesU course packages. This will be an innovative way to showcase how research and teaching resources can be combined in bite-sized ways which maximises their use for by a global audience of learners.
26 October 2012The METIKOS Project
LLAS has been invited to be a partner in a project to promote the social inclusion of immigrants in EU's societies through by improving their skills in the language of their host country. This project will be exploring a number of models of achieving this from café-style learning groups to tandem learning arrangements. It will also look at virtual modes of support for language learning for this target group. The main aim of the project is to develop a methodology of informal language learning for immigrants by adapting existing informal language learning methodologies (language cafe, TANDEM, cyber language café) to the specific needs of the immigrants. This process will be supported by the introduction of a curriculum for these informal language courses (which will make the whole process more structured and will facilitate the monitoring of the learning outcomes) as well as by the identification of existing and freely available support materials and the development of additional support materials where necessary.
4 November 2011The SPEAQ Project
The aim of the SPEAQ project (Sharing Practice in Enhancing and Assuring Quality) is to connect three key quality circles: teacher, student and quality manager in order to share and enhance quality assurance practice in higher education. This project sets out to address a real concern that quality assurance can become ritualised rather than embedded in learning and teaching practice. The outcomes from this project will seed new ideas on how to approach quality assurance within the institution providing evidence of how bringing together stakeholders in the quality process can lead to a wider and more meaningful interpretation of quality assurance. It will collect data on different stakeholder perspectives on quality assurance and undertake small projects at institutional level which will explore ways in which a more shared vision of quality assurance can be fostered at institutional and disciplinary level. SPEAQ will be building on the work of the LanQua project (Language Network for Quality Assurance) which explored issues of quality in the context of the discipline of languages. It developed a toolkit (The LanQua Toolkit www.lanqua.eu) to support frontline (academic/academic support) staff in conceptualising and describing quality from their practice perspective.
4 November 2011The OpenLIVES Project
LLAS has been funded by the JISC to lead the OpenLIVES project (Learning Insights from the Voices of Emigres from Spain). This project will digitise resources documenting the migration experiences of Spanish emigrés. Once released as open content, the raw data will be developed as open educational resources for a range of teaching and learning contexts in humanities and social sciences on topics such as migration, life history, employability skills, research skills, language learning. The project will use a tested process model for sharing expertise and teaching ideas to create reusable and innovative teaching resources. A key element of this project will be to involve students at all stages of resource development: using the original data, evaluating the teaching resources and creating/peer-reviewing their own learning resources.
2 November 2011The FAVOR Project
LLAS has been funded by JISC to lead The FAVOR (Find a Voice through Open Resources) project. The Project will showcase the excellent and often unrecognised work of part-time, hourly-paid language teachers in HE, and engage them in activities which will enhance the student experience. Tutors will publish teaching resources as open content, and create a suite of new Open Educational Resources designed to assist prospective students in understanding the nature of language study at HE level. Outputs will be disseminated to schools and evaluated by prospective and existing students and will contribute to the national agenda for the promotion and support of language learning.
21 October 2011A Web-as-Corpus approach to populating Wikiversity for teaching about Islam and Muslims in language, linguistics and area studies
Wikiversity is an online open-source public repository for University-level teaching and learning materials, based on the Wikipedia architecture for “crowd-sourcing”: it relies on volunteers to collaborate by actively contributing their knowledge for the common good. Undoubtedly a wealth of learning resources exists on the WWW, but scattered on individual websites, in a wide range of formats and structures. Individual lecturers prepare online teaching materials to support their own teaching, but few know of Wikiversity, and few have time or inclination to take on the extra step of formally registering and uploading their materials to Wikiversity. This project aims to organise and semi-automate the harvesting of these scattered resources, by adapting Web-as-Corpus techniques from Corpus Linguistics.
16 March 2011Arabic language and Islamic Studies: who studies Arabic and how can these skills be used at university and beyond?
Learning a modern foreign language in UK has declined, yet the learning of Arabic is rising. We hypothesise that there is more Arabic language competence among Islamic Studies students than is currently apparent in the university sector: this represents missed opportunities for Arabic as a career enhancing skill. A small mapping exercise will aim to sample relationships between students’ prior Arabic competence and Arabic language courses in Islamic Studies departments within UK universities. The study will also investigate Arabic language studies that students undertake in Muslim institutions such as Darul Ulooms, Madrassahs, and Muslim schools and colleges. There are possible correlations between classical Arabic (including that of the Qu'ran) and modern Arabic; ways to enhance the uptake of degree level Arabic courses amongst students who have prior knowledge of Arabic; and enhancing undergraduates’ career possibilities involving Arabic.
16 March 2011A model for collaboration between HE and non-HE institutions in developing an Islamic Studies module (Qur’anic Arabic)
A wealth of expertise in teaching Islamic Studies (IS) exists in non-HE Muslim colleges. This project aims to help universities with little or no provision in IS to tap into this wealth by establishing mutually beneficial ties with such colleges. A model for cooperation between the University of Westminster and a London-based Muslim college in the area of Qur’anic Arabic could be replicated in this or other branches of IS by other universities. The partner college would gain prestige and good practice, while the university would benefit from the college’s expertise as it expands its IS provision.
16 March 2011Community Café Project
The project will address a particular problem: the scarcity of up-to-date, online resources for community languages. The aim of the project is to work together to co-create a community collection of online language and cultural materials which will significantly enhance existing materials to support community languages.
2 June 2010Subject Centre projects 2010
The Subject Centre funds a small number of projects every year. The reports from the projects funded in 2010 are now available
2 November 2009Links into Languages
Links into Languages aims to build a learning community for language practitioners and provide high quality professional development courses that address current national priorities for languages. Based in each of the nine English regions, Links offers a nationally co-ordinated network of support centres, which house a training and drop-in centre for meetings, networking and access to resources.
6 October 2009Career destinations of modern languages graduates in Northern Ireland 2005-2009
The project is employing a researcher to track the career destinations of modern languages graduates from Northern Irish universities from the academic year 2005-2006 to the current academic year. By compiling an authoritative and informative database the project will make proposals in relation to the marketing of languages at university and also the career guidance given to students of modern languages. It is also anticipated that the data compiled will assist in course planning in both HEIs in Northern Ireland, not least in relation to combined degrees involving a link between the study of language and other subjects.
5 October 2009Islamic Studies provision in UK higher education
Working in partnership with the Subject Centre for Philosophical and Religious Studies, a team based at LLAS has carried out research funded by HEFCE on the provision of Islamic Studies-related modules at all UK Higher Education Institutions. The research showed that Islamic Studies is located in a wide variety of disciplines and departments, but that the bulk of provision is concentrated in a small number of pre-1992 universities. However, some provision was found at the majority of universities investigated. This research will inform further work to support academics working in Islamic Studies by providing clear data on the breadth and scope of current provision.
1 October 2009HumBox Project
HumBox is a collection of more than 1000 humanities teaching resources that have been uploaded to the web for lecturers to use freely. You can browse and download from the collection without creating an account, however, if you would like to take advantage of a number of productivity tools built into the design, then register using the simple form, create a profile of yourself... and away you go! You can also upload your own teaching materials to the collection from your profile page.
4 June 2009Subject Centre Mini-Projects (2008/9)
The Subject Centre funds a small number of mini-projects every year on a number of topics.
4 March 2009Subject Centre Mini-Projects (2007/8)
The Subject Centre funds a small number of mini-projects every year on a number of topics. Details of the latest phase of mini-project funding are given below.
22 May 2008Integration of university careers and volunteering services, curriculum provision and local voluntary organisations
This project aims to identify the opportunities for students to develop sustainability skills (promoting community cohesion, environmental sustainability and organisational social responsibility) in volunteering activities and work placement, as well as in aspects of the curriculum that support and accredit the development of these skills. The project will involve partnership working between the London Met student volunteering service (‘Reach’), the Department of Applied Social Sciences and local voluntary organisations in the social and environmental sectors. It aims to produce a report analysing the sustainability skills valued by voluntary sector employers, and best practice guidelines on how to develop these skills.
22 May 2008English Language at undergraduate level: its identity as a subject in UK Higher Education in the 21st century
During 2007, LLAS funded a mini-project on English Language at undergraduate level. This study reviews the current place of undergraduate English Language in Higher Education institutions in the UK in light of a rapid expansion of the subject. It is based on the analysis of documents available from universities (e.g. prospectuses, brochures, e-mails) and on the web. It provides an overview of 49 single honours English Language programmes considering the ways they are labelled, their relationship with other disciplines, their rationale, content and structure. It also identifies and discusses the preferred teaching and learning methods, and assessment procedures in these programmes. Finally, it explores marketing procedures and recruitment trends for these degrees.
18 March 2008Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning Group
The group was set up in 2005 to explore all facets of interdisciplinary teaching and learning. This includes investigating the student experience, examining the ways in which institutions encourage or discourage cross-disciplinary collaboration (in teaching), exploring how Subject Centres can support staff teaching on interdisciplinary programmes and supporting staff who do not have an obvious Subject Centre home.
17 December 2007International approaches to Islamic Studies in higher education
The Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies (LLAS), in partnership with the Subject Centre for Philosophical and Religious Studies (PRS), has prepared a report for HEFCE on international approaches to Islamic Studies. The report examines the historical development and current state of Islamic Studies in eight countries: the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United States, Australia, Malaysia and Turkey. It also presents perspectives on recent developments in Islamic Studies and the responses of governments, policy makers and funding bodies; interactions between institutions of higher education and faith-based organisations and communities; and case studies that highlight examples of innovative practice in relation to Islamic Studies in higher education. The report was commissioned by HEFCE to inform its activities relating to Islamic Studies, which was designated a Strategically Important Subject in June 2007.
12 December 2007Join the Club
LLAS was a partner in this Lingua 1 project, which established a network of community based language learning clubs
29 October 2007Routes into Languages
The Routes into Languages Programme is a Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) funded initiative to increase and widen participation in language study in higher education. It also aims to support the national role of HE languages as a motor of economic and civic regeneration. The Programme has been developed by the University Council of Modern Languages (UCML), the HE Academy Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies (LLAS) and CILT, the National Centre for Languages.
29 October 2007Language Network for Quality Assurance (LanQua)
The Subject Centre is coordinating a three-year project under the European Commission's Lifelong Learning Erasmus Network programme. The LanQua project is developing a Language Network for Quality Assurance and involves 60 partners across Europe.
29 October 2007British Sign Language: Quality Embedding of the Discipline (BSL:QED)
The main aim of this project is to establish a new on-line curriculum for the teaching of British Sign Language (BSL) at HE level.
25 September 2007Action research projects
The Subject Centre invited bids for £1,000 for practitioners wishing to undertake small scale action research projects in languages, linguistics or area studies in UK higher education.
19 September 2007Language Café
This European Commission funded project built on the concept of café culture to provide informal, social settings for people to get together, practise languages and share cultural interests. We developed a multilingual website which includes downloadable materials offering advice on setting up and joining a Language Cafe, publicity and sponsorship, and ideas for activities (www.languagecafe.eu).
11 September 2007E-learning project: Learning Object Creator (LOC) - an authoring tool for teachers to create online learning materials
The Learning Object Creator (LOC) Tool is a simple authoring tool for teachers, which has been specifically designed to enable them to create their own e-learning materials without the need for technical support or training. It has been developed by the LLAS Subject Centre, in collaboration with the University of Southampton eLanguages group, according to a tried and tested effective pedagogical design developed over four years.
1 May 2007Pedagogic Research Fund 2007/08 (Phase 3)
The Subject Centre is funding a third phase of pedagogic research projects from January 2007. Successful bidders will deliver their reports in April 2008.
5 October 2006Discover American Studies: free CD-ROM
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.
20 July 2006Promoting and evaluating the use of the European Language Portfolio (ELP) in Higher Education
The Nuffield Foundation and the University of Southampton funded 10 partner institutions to run mini-projects whose aim was to implement and evaluate the European Language Portfolio in Higher Education.
11 May 2006AHRC Review of research in modern languages
During 2006 the Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies, in partnership with the University Council for Modern Languages, undertook a review of research in modern languages which was commissioned by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. The review was completed in September 2006.
14 February 2006Opening the Door to Language Learning (OdLL)
Opening the door to language learning (OdLL) was a three-year project funded by the European Community Socrates Programme, which sought to develop and test strategies for increasing access to language learning. We worked with partners in Belgium, Hungary, Ireland, Lithuania, Spain and Sweden.
7 November 2005Materials development project
The Subject Centre's Materials Bank has been set up to encourage and facilitate the sharing of teaching materials in Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies. The Subject Centre is currently seeking to expand and develop this resource and has made funds available for the development of additional materials for the Bank.
25 May 2005Investigating longer-term employability in the humanities
LLAS worked in collaboration with the Subject Centres for English, and History, Classics and Archaeology to carry out a piece of research into the longer-term employability of graduates of these discipline areas.
3 May 2005Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
The Subject Centre received funding via the Higher Education Academy to explore ways in which our subject communities may be able to contribute towards HEFCE's Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) agenda. Each participant submitted a short article on what ESD means to his or her experience of teaching languages, linguistics or area studies.
1 March 2005Pedagogic Research Fund 2005/06 (Phase 2)
During the 2005-2006 academic year, LLAS funded six pedagogic research projects. Practitioners were able to bid for up to £4,000 to undertake an investigation into a facet of learning and teaching in languages, linguistics or area studies. Reports were submitted in January 2006 and are available to download.
15 February 2005Extending good practice in less widely used less taught (LWULT) languages
This project worked with language practitioners to disseminate and transfer innovative practice in LWULT languages through workshops and number of funded mini development projects. Collaboration across languages and between institutions was a key feature.
31 March 2003Pedagogic Research Fund 2002/03 (Phase 1)
A total of six small-scale pedagogical research projects were commissioned and the project reports were published in January 2004. Two workshops focused on research methodology were organised to support the projects.
12 March 2003Thematic Network Project (TNP)
This is the document repository for the Socrates Erasmus Thematic Network Project reports. The Subject Centre was a partner organisation in the Thematic Network Projects coordinated by the Freie Universität Berlin.
17 December 2002Collaboration programme in Modern Languages in higher education
In October 2001, the Subject Centre and the University Council of Modern Languages were awarded £482,950 from HEFCE's Restructuring and Collaboration Fund for a three-year programme. The programme consisted of 10 pilot projects involving a series of collaborative and cooperative developments in modern languages.
3 December 2002