LLAS Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies

Journal of Area Studies/ Journal of European Area Studies: Articles on Theory and Practice of Area Studies 1980-2003

The case for a common framework of reference for the validation of assessments of written English on English language degree programmes in Europe
The Bologna process carries out an agreement by European governments to create by 2010, a European Higher Education Area with two main degree cycles, undergraduate and graduate, and a common system of credits and quality assurance. In this climate of review, revision and collaboration, this paper describes a survey of existing practice with regard to expectations of attainment on degree programmes in Europe. It will also outline a proposal for a collaborative project to develop a framework for the self-validation of skill assessment on a language programme. The concept of validity informed the design of a questionnaire to collect qualitative and quantitative data on the final assessment of students' written English on English language degree programmes across Europe. Analysis of responses from 30 universities in 12 European countries revealed wide variation between different countries, within the same country and, in some cases, within the same degree programme. As a result of this survey, European partners have been identified to collaborate on the development of a framework for the self-validation of assessments of written English, which can inform the assessment of other skill areas and other languages.

Michael Peto photographic collection
Michael Peto came to Britain from Hungary in 1939. He was a freelance journalist with the Observer newspaper, and travelled extensively, covering the work of the Save the Children Fund around the world. Other aspects of his work involved the arts, especially the London ballet scene. Major topics covered by the collection (which consists of some 130,000 items) thus include Eastern Europe, Israel, India, ballet and theatre and Scotland, as well as leading political, literary and entertainment figures.

George Washington Wilson collection
The George Washington Wilson collection comprises 40,000 negatives spanning the period 1859-1908, which offer a topographical record of the UK (but also include material relating to colonial Australia and South Africa, and the western Mediterranean coast). It is also a rich record of urban and rural growth, industrialisation, transportation and many elements of social history. Further collections held by the University complement the GWW archive with many more photographs of Scotland, and particularly north-east Scotland - its landscape, buildings and archaeology.

Mapping the World: collaborative support for research on overseas mapping
The aim of this project is to open up a major under-used resource for research in a wide range of disciplines in the Humanities and Social Sciences by targeted series-level cataloguing of post-1850 overseas mapping. This will facilitate remote access to key materials by converting map library catalogue records, which at present are held on cards and accessible only to researchers visiting the libraries in person. The areas of coverage include Africa, North and South America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand as well as much of Asia and the Middle East. The individual countries covered range from the tiniest Pacific islands to the vast areas of British Antarctica, from Mediterranean islands such as Cyprus and Malta to countries the size of Nigeria and Canada. Initially, different areas of the world were allocated to each partner but now each institution can also derive CURL records for areas already covered. For example, six libraries have completed work on Australia, Iran, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and South Africa.

Documents from the Salò Republic
A collection of documents from Mussolini's Salò Republic, or Repubblica Sociale Italiana, a Nazi-instigated regime based on the shores of Lake Garda from 1943 to 1945. The collection includes material from different administrative departments. One group of files from the Ministero degli Affari Esteri contains around 350 documents pertaining to the requisition of properties for government use. Other sections include orders from the Ministero delle Forze Armate: Sottosegretariato di Stato per la Marina, vehicle and travel permits from the Guardia del Duce, and anti-Allied and pro-Fascist propaganda from the Ministero della Cultura Popolare. There are also three passports issued by the regime, around 40 intercepted radio messages from Allied broadcasts, including from Reuters and from the Vatican radio, and twenty bulletins issued by the regime's news agency, the Agenzia Stefani.

Sprigge Collection
Cecil Jackson Squire Sprigge was chief correspondent for Reuters in Italy during World War II. He had previously been Italian correspondent for the Manchester Guardian, where he was succeeded by his wife Sylvia. The Sprigge collection covers the period c. 1920-1970 and reflects the Sprigges' interest in all aspects of Italian affairs, including the Fascist regime, Vatican politics, post-war reconstruction, art and literature. They also contain material about European politics and diplomatic relations. Printed books from the Sprigge collection were added to the Main Library stock and include material on Italian history, politics and philosophy, as well as a number of guidebooks and pamphlets collected by the Sprigges during their time in Italy. A number of the books are not yet fully catalogued.

Cohn Collection
The Cohn Collection, which comprises approximately 1,000 volumes, was presented to King's College London by Ernst Joseph Cohn (1904-1976), Visiting Professor of European Law. The collection covers all major aspects of law, but there is a particular emphasis on the legal systems of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The bulk of the material dates from the twentieth century, with a high proportion being in the German language.

Kevin Morrison Collection
A collection of primary sources, ranging from 1933-1950, showing life in Germany under a dictatorship and with Allied occupation. The collection has a copy of the Volkischer Beobachter (official Nazi newspaper) for the day after Adolf Hitler became chancellor on 30 January 1933. It also holds photographs of Germany in ruins in the summer of 1945. In between these two landmark years German society underwent a radical transformation. The collection records this transformation.

Fascism in Europe Collection
The Fascism in Europe Collection is a developing collection of books on the history of fascism. Many items are relevant to Nazi Germany or the German occupation. They are in English, German or a number of other languages.

Threat to Area Studies at Durham
Durham University has recommended to its Senate and Executive Committee that the Department of East Asian Studies be abolished, with the last intake of students in October 2003.

Teaching social sciences in area studies programmes
Discusses the origins of different area studies programmes (e.g. of American studies, Russian studies, European studies). Defines the relationship of area studies to social sciences. Assesses the current situation of, and logistical challenges to, social science teaching in area studies. Gives pointers to future developments.

European studies programmes in the UK
European Studies is a type of interdisciplinary programme, widely established in the UK since the 1970s, which combines modern languages with disciplinary studies in the social sciences or humanities. Programmes fall predominantly into two groups: those based on progressive study of two or more disciplines applied to Europe, typically history, politics and economics, and those in which language is studied in the context of European cultures and societies. The study of the EU is a core part of most programmes. Degrees are usually of four years with one year spent at university or in a placement in continental Europe.