More than a decade into the 21st century, we have yet to grasp fully the age in which we are living. The Third International Conference of the Slovene Association for the Study of English will address changes in epochal paradigms and the opportunities they offer for English studies.
While English's role as the predominant global language seems more assured than ever, the traditional role of English studies is no longer obvious. As well, the critical theoretical tools employed in the past - tools which emerged from a context of static print and which were developed before the rise of television, let alone the internet - do not always seem adequate for examining today's world.
What lies ahead for scholars of English and for English studies? For the English language? How are we to theorize, to come to terms with, the literary and real world that surrounds us? What is the role of the traditional (or contemporary) canon in a context where reading has lost is primacy? Are books and texts a bygone concept in the era of hypertext, immediate electronic revision, and truly interactive reading/comment experiences in online environments? Is language reduced to computer code as content and speed trump form in text messages and sometimes even more formal discourse? What is the broader role of culture in a world in which everything is cultural, and in which culture and economy are intertwined to an unprecedented degree?
The SDAŠ 2012 conference will take place from 10th to 12th May 2012 in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
The conference is organized by the Slovene Association for the Study of English and the English Department at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana.
Keynote Speakers
Prof. David Crystal (Honorary Prof. of Linuistics, University of Wales, Bangor, UK) is a writer, editor, lecturer, and broadcaster. He is the author of a number of books on linguistics and the English language. He is perhaps best known for his work on language encyclopedias, phonetics, phonology, endangered languages, internet linguistics and text language.
Prof. Crystal's lecture is sponsored by the British Council.
Prof. David Staines (University of Ottawa, Canada), the author and editor of several scholarly books on topics ranging from Arthurian Romance to Marshall McLuhan, has been especially instrumental in the development of Canadian literature. He has been a driving force behind the Giller Prize, Canada's primary award for fiction, and the Charles Taylor Prize, its counterpart for Literary Non-Fiction. Professor Staines is general editor of McClelland & Stewart's "New Canadian Library."
Raymond Kerr is a teacher development advisor for the British Council Global English Team. He is based in Istanbul. Raymond has been an ELT teacher, teacher educator and materials writer for over 30 years. His special area of expertise is in primary and secondary EFL teacher development.
Papers
Each paper should be 20-minutes in length to allow for a 5-minute discussion period. A selection of papers will be published after the event in a special edition of ELOPE.
Conference Fee
€100 regular
€80 SDAŠ members (applies to members of the Slovenian branch of ESSE, SDAŠ, only)
€50 students, including postgraduates (please send proof of student status)
€30 late registration fee (to be added to all registration fees after 10th March 2012)
No refunds will be issued to no-shows.
Accommodation
Ljubljana is a busy congress centre and hotels tend to fill up quickly in the spring months, which is why we would suggest making a booking as early as possible. Some of the hotels and B&Bs closest to the venue are listed below (with no endorsement from the organizing committee), but many more options are available within walking distance, for details see the website www.visitljubljana.si. Due to limited capacities, participants are requested to handle all arrangements themselves.
The venue and some of the near-by hotels are shown on the maps below (both maps are courtesy of Google Maps; the first map is static and the second dynamic).
