News and events
- Top teachers continue to inspire
- Open to quality teaching
- Winner of the Division of EASS 2007 Leading Research School Award
- UNESCO Women's Studies and Gender Research Network
- Ho Chi Minh City Television Channel 9
- Jessica Roberts with World Youth International
- The Intercultural Language Teaching and Learning in Practice Project
- Dr Terry O'Callaghan and the political risk, institutions and regulatory regimes of Asia-Pacific
- Second Rhodes Scholar for UniSA
- The official book launch of 'Activating Human Rights'
Top teachers continue to inspire
Ten UniSA teachers have been acknowledged in eight projects to win
citations in this year’s Australian Learning and Teaching Council Awards for
Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning.
Formerly known as the Carrick Awards, they are Australia’s top awards for
excellence in university teaching and program development. Dr Rodney Fopp
from International Studies was awarded for a sustained approach to engaging
with students and responding to diverse needs.
Six UniSA lecturers have been recognised by Open Universities Australia
(OUA) for consistently good teaching in 2007.
Based on student surveys, OUA issued certificates to 16 lecturers across all
of the providers of OUA courses in Australia.
The UniSA recipients are Phil Johnson, Nicky Kassoudakis, Kent Wilson and
Peter Lennox (Commerce); Dr Chris Klinger (International Studies); and Dr
Jackie O’Flaherty (Pharmacy and Medical Sciences).
Phil Johnson, who was recognised as one of the three top OUA lecturers
nationally, also received a cheque for $500.
Professor Neil Otway, Director of the Centre for Regional Engagement, which
provides administrative support for OUA students, said the certificates were
"a credit to the commitment and expertise of all UniSA lecturers involved in
the delivery of OUA courses".
Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academic, Professor Peter Lee presented certificates
to the recipients at a ceremony and luncheon held in the Hawke Building in
late March, also attended by Pro Vice Chancellor, Strategy and Planning,
Professor Hilary Winchester.
Winner of the Division of EASS 2007 Leading Research School Award
The School of International Studies was awarded the Division of EASS 2007 Leading Research School 'rock' trophy on Tuesday, 20th November at The Adelaide Zoo.
The research award's judging panel included Professor Caroline McMillen (PVC: R&I), Professor Michael Rowan (PVC: EASS), Professor Drew Dawson (Dean: Research), Dr Margaret Peters (Acting Dean: Research Education) and Associate Professor Gerry Bloustien (Deputy Director: HRI).
The School with an average of 3.95 supported researcher points/FTE academic is ranked 8th out of 21 in the university.
UNESCO Women's Studies and Gender Research Network
Assoc Professor Suzanne Franzway is a founding member of the Women’s Studies and Gender Research Network launched from the Human Rights and Gender Equality Section, Social and Human Sciences Sector at a meeting held at Miriam College, Manilla, 25-26 July, 2007.
The network’s objectives are to advance WS/GR by research and advocacy for women’s rights, encourage capacity building for students, researchers and WS programs and research centres, and encourage collaborations between UNESCO and inter-university partnerships.
In 2008-2009, the network will support 3 projects, Women and the judiciary (focus on the Middle East), Radical Democratisation of daily life, and Social Rights and women’s trade union leadership. Suzanne has been working on the development of the third project over the last 18 months together with Professor Valentine Moghadam (Purdue University) and Professor Mary Margaret Fonow (Arizona State University).
The Network will be based at Miriam College for 2 years and limited to 26 participants in order to produce a clear organisational and policy framework.
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Front row: Ambassador Preciosa Soliven, UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines President Patricia Licuanan, Miriam College Pierre Sane, Ass DG UNESCO Anita Nassar, Lebanese American University Valentine Moghadam, Purdue University. Back row: Aurora Javate-De Dios, Miriam College Zosima Lee, Uni of Philippines Jose Lapuz, , UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines Alison Kimmich, National WS Association, USA Dina Rodriguez, University for Peace, Costa Rica Eunice Smith, UNESCO Graciela Di Marco, Universidad Nacional de San Martin, Argentina Gigi Francesco, Miriam College Tabitha Mulyampti, Makarere University Suzanne Franzway, UniSA Rainer Ibana, Ateneo de Manila University. |
Ho Chi Minh City Television Channel 9
Ho Chi Minh City Television Channel 9 visited South Australia in March to produce a documentary film introducing South Australia as a 'must go' destination for Vietnamese students seeking to study abroad. The film has been broadcasted twice on 'In the process of integration and globalisation' and 'Industrialisation and modernisation.'
UniSA is featured as an innovative University and is known as one of the best Universities in South Australia, based on its advanced technology, excellent academic staff, practical curriculum and its international standards in teaching methodology.
In particular, the School of International Studies has been praised for its friendly environment for international students and highly qualified and supportive teaching staff.
To view the full documentary film (in Vietnamese), click on the play button below. Alternatively, you can select alternate download to view the documentary via Windows Media Player.
If your browser does not already support these formats, you will need to download:
To obtain a copy of this documentary film on CD, please contact Jamie Giang via Jamie.Giang@unisa.edu.au.
Jessica Roberts with World Youth International - Hawke Ambassador International Volunteer Experience
Nepal Overseas Action Program
Living in Nepal and working as a volunteer is certainly a challenging
experience, and it is not suited to everyone. But I loved my time there so
much that I returned for a second, and a third time! In 2005, I was a first
time traveller and participant of the World Youth International Overseas
Action Program (OAP). I returned for a holiday with several friends in 2006,
proud to show off my new home; and then returned again at the end of 2006 to
be the Assistant Coordinator of the November program.
The OAP is a
development program for 18 to 30 year olds, designed to offer participants
the chance to immerse themselves in a different culture and make a
meaningful contribution to lives of people less fortunate. One of my
favourite aspects of the program was staying with host families in the
villages we worked in, and I quickly fell in love with their simple life and
everyday routine. Every morning would start with a steaming cup of fresh
buffalo milk tea complete with hand crushed spices and plenty of sugar, and
would end with an amazing meal of dal bhat (rice and lentils), prepared from
freshly picked ingredients and cooked on a mud brick stove. It was inspiring
to see how my families worked tirelessly every day, doing the same thing
they’d been doing for years and will be doing for years to come. It humbled
me to see how happy they were living their simple, monotonous life; and made
me feel grateful for the abundant choice we have in Australia.
Although I was meant to be the one giving something to their communities, I
often felt like I received more than I gave. It was a personal journey full
of learning and development, and the Nepali people I met were inspirational.
They showed me a completely different way of life by accepting me as their
family, rather than just a tourist. I experienced things which most
travellers would never be able to, even just little day to day occurrences.
There were many challenges I faced along the way, and it was by no means an
easy journey. In some ways, it was the challenges that made it so rewarding
- it was the achievement of lasting 24 days without a proper shower, of
building a water tank to serve an entire community, of surviving on lentils
and rice for 3 months, of seeing the look in a child’s face when you offered
them a pack of coloured pencils. My time in Nepal has given me a unique
perspective on the world and shaped my life in a way I will always be
grateful for.
For more information about the
Hawke Ambassador International Volunteer Experience, please contact Dr
Terry O'Callaghan at
Terry.O'Callaghan@unisa.edu.au or 08 8302 9041.
Jessica Roberts
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Intercultural Language Teaching and Learning in Practice (ILTLP) is a new national project commissioned and funded by the Australian Government Department of Education, Science and Training under the Australian Government Quality Teacher Programme (AGQTP). The project is being developed and managed by the Research Centre for Languages and Cultures Education (RCLCE) in the School of International Studies at the University of South Australia.
The project aims to extend teachers' understanding of and engagement with Intercultural Language Learning. Through participation in the ILTLP project, teachers and school leaders will:
- engage with a nationally coordinated research and professional learning program that is underpinned by the latest research in languages teaching and learning and grounded in classroom practice
- increase their knowledge and understanding of the principles and pedagogies of intercultural language teaching and learning
- integrate this knowledge and understanding into classroom teaching and learning to enhance student learning outcomes.
The project, which runs from July 2006 to December 2007 is being delivered in four phases:
| Phase 1 | August 2006 – November 2006 Commissioned, supported school-based research focussing on long-term programming and assessment.
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| Phase 2 | August 2006 – February 2007 Development of a set of professional learning materials and processes to support the delivery of the ILTLP programme in each state and territory.
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| Phase 3 | February 2007 – November 2007 Delivery of the 5.5 day programme in each state and territory, establishing school-based research.
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| Phase 4 | November 2007 – January 2008 Refinement of the ILTLP resources including documentation of school-based investigations. |
ILTLP key dates:
| March 7, 8, 9 | Initial 2.5 day conference in the Northern Territory |
| March 19, 20, 21 | Initial 2.5 day conference in Victoria |
| March 26, 27, 28 | Initial 2.5 day conference in Tasmania |
| March 28, 29, 30 | Initial 2.5 day conference in the Australian Capital Territory |
| April 30, May 1, 2 | Initial 2.5 day conference in Western Australia |
| May 8,9,10 | Initial 2.5 day conference in Queensland |
| May 16, 17, 18 | Initial 2.5 day conference in New South Wales |
| May 23, 24, 25 | Initial 2.5 day conference in South Australia |
April – November
- Classroom-based investigations conducted by participants
- 2 x 1 day recall sessions and 1 full day reporting session as determined by individual states and territories
November – January
- Phase 4 – Refinement of the ILTLP resources and reporting to DEST.
For further information please contact Research Project Officers Kate Loechel, kate.loechel@unisa.edu.au, Anne-Marie Morgan, anne-marie.morgan@unisa.edu.au or Nives Mercurio nives.mercurio@unisa.edu.au or on 08 8302 4162.
Dr Terry O'Callaghan and the political risk, institutions and regulatory regimes of Asia-Pacific
The School of International Studies is committed to research that leads to the advancement and application of knowledge in the wider local and international community.
Dr Terry O'Callaghan from the School of International Studies, is the winner of two research grants totalling over half a million dollars from the Australian Research Council. He is currently undertaking research projects that will lead to a more accurate political risk assessment system, help improve the investment transparency of Asia and deepen our knowledge of the role of institutions and regulatory regimes:
- Linkage Project (LP 0669261) “Assessing the Role of Political and Regulatory Risks for Foreign Investors: A Multi-Country Study of Four Industry Sectors.” Value $468,000 over 5 years.
- Discovery Project (DP 0771064) “Political Risk, Institutions and Regulatory Regimes: Business, Foreign Investment and Public Administration in Asia.” Value $256,000 over 3 years.
As the Chief Investigator, Dr Terry O'Callaghan is working with three industry partners, including Nomura Securities, a company with a market capitalisation of more than a trillion US dollars, Gold Fields Australasia, a subsidiary of the world's fifth largest gold producer and the South Australian Chamber of Mines and Energy.
The anonymous reviewers have described the projects as: conceptually and methodologically rich, innovative, original and impressive. The projects are path-breaking in their scope and aims and are designed to develop a new intermediate meso-level risk assessment system located at the industry level. The project overcomes the limitations of both conventional macro-level (sovereign risk) and micro level firm risk analyses, and provides foreign investors with a contextualised, industry-specific risk assessment system. This is also the first time that a complete mapping of the political risk environments in the Asia-Pacific have been undertaken.
In winning these research grants, Dr Terry O'Callaghan is establishing himself and the School of International Studies as a leading authority on political risk in the Asia-Pacific region.
For further information on the research projects and/or Dr Terry O'Callaghan, please email the School of International Studies at aci@unisa.edu.au or telephone + 61 (08) 8302 4026.
Second Rhodes Scholar for UniSA
UniSA International Business/International Studies graduate Amy King won a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford University from September 2007. King becomes UniSA’s second Rhodes Scholar and joins a long list of distinguished Australians, such as former Prime Minister Bob Hawke, Tony Abbott, Geoffrey Robertson, Sir Zelman Cowan and Lord Florey, who were all Rhodes Scholars. Click here for full story.
The official book launch of 'Activating Human Rights'
 Dr Gerard Goggin, Associate Professor Baden Offord, Justice Michael Kirby and Professor Elisabeth Porter at the book launch of 'Activating Human Rights', at Gleebooks, Glebe, Sydney. |
Professor Elisabeth Porter and Associate Professor Baden Offord recently celebrated the official launch of their book 'Activating Human Rights' in Sydney, to a crowd of academics, human rights activists and law students. People travelled from all over Sydney, Adelaide and Byron Bay to share the event. The book was launched by the influential Justice Michael Kirby at Gleebooks, Glebe.
The book is a fascinating examination into the affirmation of the importance of human rights in the twenty-first century and explores the vital connections between the theory and practice of human rights through a range of perspectives - reconciliation, refugees, women, indigenous issues, same-sex sexualities, conflict resolution, environmental degradation, political freedoms and disability.
Professor Elisabeth Porter is the Head of School for International Studies, University of South Australia. Associate Professor Baden Offord teaches Cultural Studies in the School of Arts and is Director of the Centre for Peace and Social Justice at Southern Cross University, Australia.
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Porter, Elisabeth & Offord, (2006) Baden, eds., Activating Human
Rights, Oxford, New York and Berne: Peter Lang European Academic Publishers,
European, 275pp. ISBN 3-03910-509-4 and US ISBN -8204-7515-7. The book is available at all good bookstores and selected public libraries. To order a copy of the book, please click here for an order form or email aci@unisa.edu.au. |