Events
2012 Symposium
3 - 4 December 2012
The Research Centre for Languages and Cultures at the University of South Australia is excited to present a symposium on Language and Wellbeing: Perspectives on education and health.
Each year the University of South Australia’s Research Centre for Languages and Cultures hosts an applied linguistics symposium designed to encourage discussion and debate on a diverse range of issues related to language and languages.
This year’s symposium will stimulate discussion around the relationship between language and wellbeing in the contexts of education and health.
2011 Symposium
Shifting sands: Perspectives on the changing face of languages education in the Asia-Pacific region
14 - 15 November 2011
The continuing globalisation of education, in tandem with migration trends and significant socio-economic developments in the Asia-Pacific region that have changed the geopolitical landscape, gives pause for thought concerning the evolving role of languages education in this part of the world. In particular, these things raise questions about how and on what basis governments and educational institutions are promoting both languages in general as well as specific languages, the degree of uptake by students, the way in which educators think about languages and design and deliver language curricula, and how languages taught in the region sit in relation to one another - and, most intriguingly perhaps, the role of English in relation to that of Asian languages.
This year's Symposium, then, has a distinctly regional focus and its three sub-themes have been chosen to allow for an expansive discussion of key issues and debates. As such it promises to be a particularly relevant and engaging event for those of us involved in languages education in the Asia-Pacific region.
Click here to download the flyer.
Public forum
Languages in flux: the place of Chinese and English in the Asia-Pacific region
14 November 2011
5.00 - 6.30 pm
Sir Hans Heysen Building room HH3-08
UniSA, City West
The Research Centre for Languages and Cultures (RCLC) is privileged to present a seminar featuring distinguished scholars of international renown who will offer individual perspectives and insights on the status and roles of the Chinese and English languages, particularly in the context of China as the emerging economic and political superpower in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.
Among other things, the discussion promises to provoke questions around notions of language and power, the nature of the relationship between English and Chinese, and whether and under what circumstances English might be usurped by Chinese as the world's lingua franca.
The discussion promises to be of interest to all those involved in language, languages education, language change and the social, political and economic forces that govern the perception and influence of languages.
Click here to download the flyer.
Click here to download the abstracts.
Please email kate.loechel@unisa.edu.au to register.
Research seminars
All seminars are held 4pm-5pm in room C1-41 on the Magill Campus of the University of South Australia. All are welcome to attend. If you would like to receive a weekly reminder of the upcoming seminar, send an email toTim.Curnow@unisa.edu.au.
Click here to download the seminar program for study period 5.
Italian language and culture symposium (3 - 4 June 2011)
The Italian Ambassador to Australia attended a two-day symposium hosted by the Research Centre for Languages and Cultures. The symposium explored new ideas around the teaching and learning of Italian language and culture. Click here to read the full story.
Visitors
The Centre maintains a wide network of colleagues in related fields and runs a ongoing program of visiting scholars that complements and supplements its interdisciplinary research and program areas.
Visitors typically contribute to the research culture of the Centre through:
- collaborative research
- public lectures
- guest lectures on teaching programs associated with the Centre
- participation in the Centre Research Seminar Series (weekly presentations and discussions on research issues)
Over the last five years the Centre has been visited by researchers with national and international reputations in the fields of languages and cultures, languages education, applied linguistics and international education. These include:
- Genevieve Zarate
Professor of Language Education at the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilisations
- Heidi Byrnes
George M Roth Distinguished Professor of German at the Georgetown University
- Jasone Cenoz
Professor of Education, University of the Basque Country
- Durk Gorter
Ikerbasque Research Professor, Faculty of Education, University of the Basque Country
- Vai Ramanathan
Professor of Linguistics, University of California Davis
- Michael Paige
Professor of International and Intercultural Education, University of Minnesota
- Josef A. Mestenhauser
Professor Emeritus, Dept. of Educational Policy and Administration, University of Minnesota
- Claire Kramsch
Professor of German and Foreign Language Acquisition, University of California Berkley
- Joseph Lo Bianco
Professor of Language and Literacy Education, University of Melbourne
- Jane Knight
Adjunct Professor, Ontario Institute of Education, University of Toronto