2007 will see the School of Communication celebrate more than 30 years of teaching, learning and research. It is a unique chance to revisit the fascinating history of the School, and take a sneak peak at the exciting projects in the pipeline!
The School of Communication evolved long before the University of South Australia itself, with the first Head of School appointed in 1977. Following the amalgamation of three schools (Communication, Teacher Education and Liberal Studies), and later when the University was formed, with the inclusion of staff from Library and Information Studies and the School of General Education from the South Australian Institute of Technology, the School of Communication has seen many changes, especially to its official name.
Throughout its many incarnations, such as the "School of Communication Arts", the "School of Communication and Cultural Studies" and the ‘ School of Communication and Information Studies”, the School of Communication has developed to meet a rapidly changing society, incorporating new courses, new media and a fascinating ensemble of high quality teaching staff. Under the direction of progressive Heads of School, from Gunther Kress, Michael Galvin to the current Head of School, Kerry Green, the School of Communication can boast a great number of achievements from staff, researchers and students.
The School of Communication continues to make a significant impact, locally and globally, as one of the largest and longest serving schools of communication and journalism in Australia. Further information on the history of the School of Communication will be available soon.
PROGRAM
Special Guest: Professor Gunther Kress
| Event | Public Lecture with Professor Gunther Kress "Theorizing communication for an era of instability" |
|---|---|
| Time | 3:00pm – 5:00pm |
| Venue | H1-44, Magill Campus |
| 3:00 – 3:10 | Welcome from Head of School Professor Kerry Green |
|---|---|
| 3:10 – 3:15 | Welcome from Acting Pro Vice Chancellor Associate Professor Adrian Vicary |
| 3:15 – 3:30 | COM Story |
| 3:30 – 4:15 | Public Lecture with Professor Gunther Kress "Theorizing communication for an era of instability" |
| 4:15 – 4:30 | Open Discussion |
| 4:30 – 5:00 | Drinks and nibbles |
| Event | Presentation and Cocktail Party |
|---|---|
| Time | 5:00pm – 9:00pm |
| Venue | Cafeteria, A Building, Magill Campus |
| MC | Professor Kerry Green, Head of School |
| 5:00 – 5:30 | Arrival |
|---|---|
| 5:30 – 5:35 | Welcoming to the Land Uncle Lewis O'Brien |
| 5:35 – 5:40 | Welcome from Vice Chancellor Professor Peter Høj |
| 5:40 – 5:47 | COM Story |
| 5:47 – 5:50 | Scholarship Announcements |
| 5:50 – 6:00 | Power Grad Testimonials |
| 6:00 – 6:05 | Launch of School of COM Facebook |
| 6:05 – 6:15 | Professor Gunther Kress |
| 6:15 – 9:00 | Cocktail Party |
Special Guest: Professor Gunther Kress
Gunther Kress, Professor of Semiotics and Education
Director of the Centre for Multimodal Research Director, ESRC Research Project 'Gains and Losses: Changes in Representation, Knowledge and Pedagogy in Learning Resources 1935-2005'
Publications (a selection)
- 2006 Reading images: the grammar of visual design (2nd edition); Gunther Kress and Theo van Leeuwen
- 2005 English in Urban Classrooms: A Multimodal Perspective on Teaching and Learning; Gunther Kress et al
- 2003 Literacy in the New Media Age; Gunther Kress
- 2003 Multimodal Literacy; Carey Jewitt and Gunther Kress
- 2001 Multimodal Discourse: the modes and media of contemporary communication; Gunther Kress and Theo van Leeuwen
- 2000 Multimodal Learning and Teaching: The rhetorics of the science classroom; Gunther Kress et al
- 1997 Before Writing: Rethinking the paths to literacy; Gunther Kress
- 1996 Reading Images: The grammar of graphic design Gunther Kress and Theo van Leeuwen
- 1993 Language as Ideology (2nd edition); Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress
- 1988 Social Semiotics; Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress
"Theorizing communication for an era of instability"
Many societies are now marked by intense diversity; their economies are globally rather than nationally controlled; cultural globalization - whether in music, fashion, entertainment, food - is commonplace.
Mrs Thatcher's dictum "there's no such thing as society" seems to have become reality, so that it is easier now to speak of community than of society. Power has not been equalized, by any means or measure, yet authority relations have become highly unstable. Former certainties about forms of interaction, values, knowledge and authority have disappeared in the course of these changes. Technological change, while not causal, has massively enabled and amplified the processes. There is no discernible slowing down of these processes within any foreseeable future.
In that environment communication has become fraught: each occasion of interaction is, in principle new, unknowable and on each occasion to be newly negotiated. The modes and media of communication have undergone a revolution: the replacement of the book by the screen as the central medium of communication; and the displacement of writing by images in many instances of public communication. Relations of author to reader have been replaced by those of the 'designer' (or the design team) and the 'navigator' of the textual entity. In that environment the authority of authors has given way to the design of 'readers' who transform the 'information' they collect in their navigating - whether of screen or book - to the 'knowledge' they need now, in their life-worlds.
These are the issues that form the core of my thinking, research and writing at the moment. I will use examples from my research and that of some of my colleagues to show what this looks like. Given my professional location, I explore these issues largely in relation to education, but I will show how they apply to communication everywhere.
Gunther Kress
VENUE
The 30th Year Celebrations will be held at the Magill Campus of the University of South Australia.
Magill Campus is set in spacious parklands eight kilometers from the city and its contemporary functionalist architecture houses a state-of-the-art library and excellent student-centred learning facilities for a range of humanities and social science disciplines. Amenities include a theatre, playing fields, a heated swimming pool and a gymnasium.
Monday, December 3rd
Public Lecture will take place in the lecture theater in Amy Wheaton Building (H Building), H1-44
Tuesday, December 4th
Presentation and Cocktail Party will be held in Cafeteria, A Building.
Parking
Free parking will be available. Entrance from the Lorne Avenue, please follow the signs on the day.
For more information contact Mrs Kas Ward at kas.ward@unisa.edu.au or +61 8 8302 4421.
CONTACT
Kas Ward
Project Coordinator
Room B2-07, Magill Campus
e-mail: kas.ward@unisa.edu.au
t: +61 8 8302 4421
f: +61 8 8302 4745
Christina Penhall
Project Consultant
Room B2-04, Magill Campus
e-mail: christina.penhall@unisa.edu.au
t: +61 8 8302 4442
f: +61 8 8302 4745
School Office
Room C2-20, Magill Campus
t: +61 8 8302 4486
f: +61 8 8302 4745
