Description
Transnationalizing Modern Languages (TML) is a three year UK Research Council funded project looking at practices of linguistic and cultural translation generated by migration from and to Italy. The project highlighted the work of cultural associations as crucibles in which new expressions of (trans)national identity might be formed. A parallel interest of the project was to rethink Modern Languages as a discipline moving beyond its conventional focus on a single nation, or a homogenously conceived language area. Looking beyond academic disciplines and questions, we wanted to develop our understanding of a key question in globalized society: how do people respond creatively to living in a bi-lingual or multi-lingual environment and to identifying themselves as mobile individuals or communities? In order to pursue this fundamental question, we undertook a range of projects with schools and other educational groups in the UK and Italy. The success of these projects has been confirmed by the award of additional funding to pursue these questions in multilingual Namibia where English functions as a lingua franca, but is the first language of very few people.
This session will present a range of the initiatives which we have undertaken with our co-researchers in the UK, Italy, and Namibia, and will reflect critically on how these initiatives have contributed to the ambition to re-think Modern Languages in terms of research and pedagogical practice, as well as on the impact these can have in a variety of social and professional contexts.
| Period | 4 Jul 2017 |
|---|---|
| Event title | Australian Centre for Italian Studies Scontri e incontri: The Dynamics of Italian Transcultural Exchanges 9th Biennial ACIS Conference |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Prato, ItalyShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |