University of Hawai'i National Foreign Language Resource Center (NFLRC).(NEWS FROM SPONSORING ORGANIZATIONS)

The University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center engages in research and materials development projects and conducts workshops and conferences for language professionals among its many activities.

2008 SECOND LANGUAGE RESEARCH FORUM

With the theme, Exploring SLA: Perspectives, Positions, and Practices, the Second Language Research Forum (SLRF) returns to the University of Hawaii at Manoa for the third time on October 17-19, 2008 (with the NFLRC serving as co-sponsor). Highlights include plenary talks by Harald Clahsen (University of Essex), Alan Firth (Newcastle University), Carmen Muooz (Universtat de Barcelona), & Richard Schmidt (University of Hawaii at Manoa); 4 colloquia; and over 150 paper and poster sessions. Visit our website for more information.

1ST INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON LANGUAGE DOCUMENTATION & CONSERVATION: SUPPORTING SMALL LANGUAGES

The 1st International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation (ICLDC) will be held at the University of Hawaii at Manoa from March 12-14, 2009. There will also be an optional opportunity to visit Hilo, on the Big Island of Hawaii, in an extension of the conference that will focus on the Hawaiian language revitalization program, March 16-17. Conference sponsors include the UH National Foreign Language Resource Center, National Resource Center East Asia, and Center for Pacific Island Studies.

It has been a decade since Himmelmann's article on language documentation appeared and focused the field into thinking in terms of creating a lasting record of a language that could be used by speakers as well as by academics. This conference aims to assess what has been achieved in the past decade and what the practice of language documentation within linguistics has been and can be. It has become apparent that there is too much for a linguist alone to achieve and that language documentation requires collaboration. This conference will focus on the theme of collaboration in language documentation and revitalization and will include sessions on interdisciplinary topics.

Plenary speakers include Nikolaus Himmelmann (University of Munster), Leanne Hinton (UC Berkeley), Paul Newman (Indiana University & University of Michigan), and Phil Cash Cash (University of Arizona).

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Abstracts are due by September 15, 2008, with notification of acceptance by October 17, 2008. We ask for abstracts of 400 words and a 50-word summary for inclusion in the conference program. All abstracts will be submitted to blind peer review by international experts on the topic. See conference website for more details.

NEW NFLRC PUBLICATIONS

Documenting and Revitalizing Austronesian Languages

The most recent addition to our group of online journals, Language Documentation and Conservation, released this, its first Special Publication. Also available online, the case studies found in this volume lead to a discussion of changes in the field of linguistics and the alliances which are being built between linguists and community language activists. The 11 chapters in the book touch upon the key themes of international capacity building initiatives, documentation and revitalization activities, and computational methods and tools for language documentation.

Check out our many other publications.

OUR ONLINE JOURNALS SOLICIT SUBMISSIONS

Language Learning & Technology is a refereed online journal, jointly sponsored by the University of Hawai' i NFLRC and the Michigan State University Center for Language Education and Research (CLEAR). LLT focuses on issues related to technology and language education. For more information on submission guidelines, visit the LLT submissions page.

Language Documentation & Conservation is a fully refereed, open-access journal sponsored by NFLRC and published exclusively in electronic form by the University of Hawaii Press. LD&C publishes papers on all topics related to language documentation and conservation. For more information on submission guidelines, visit the LD&C submissions page.

Reading in a Foreign Language is a refereed online journal, jointly sponsored by the University of Hawaii NFLRC and the Department of Second Language Studies. RFL serves as an excellent source for the latest developments in the field, both theoretical and pedagogic, including improving standards for foreign language reading. For more information on submission guidelines, visit the RFL submissions page.

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