CRITICS: Knowledge & Discourse Conference
Teun A. van Dijk
teun at let.uva.nl
Tue Jan 9 13:48:57 UTC 1996
- ---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Tue, 9 Jan 1996 18:48:54 +0800
From: Nigel Bruce <njbruce at hkucc.hku.hk>
To: teun at let.uva.nl
Subject: Knowledge & Discourse Conference
* * * * *
Dear Colleague,
This is to announce our final call for papers and colloquia for our upcoming
international multidisciplinary conference :
"KNOWLEDGE & DISCOURSE: Changing relationships across academic
disciplines & professional practices".
NOTE: This is a full message, so we advise you to PRINT it out, but please
keep the message in a folder for forwarding to interested colleagues.
***************
Conference DATES: 18-21 June, 1996
PLACE: Hong Kong, at the University of Hong Kong.
Deadline for Abstracts: 15th January 1996; flexible on overseas submissions.
Abstracts accepted by E-Mail, fax & surface mail.
NOTE: Information on abstract submissions, registration, etc. follows later.
***************
THERE IS A GROWING AWARENESS of the roles that language and culture play in
the construction of the knowledges and beliefs that underpin our
disciplinary and professional practices. This conference is an attempt to
foster that growth, and from small beginnings we have already attracted
submissions from over 30 countries, from Chile and Australia in the south,
to Canada, Finland, Russia and China in the north.
The broad AIMS of this conference are to:
# highlight the complex roles language and culture play in the construction
of the knowledges and beliefs than underpin or dominate our disciplines and
professions
# critique disciplinary and professional knowledges and social and discourse
practices from social, philosophical, historical and political perspectives
# promote change in academic curricula by bringing different disciplines
into dialogue with each other, & by encouraging them to re-consider their
disciplinary identities
# explore learning and knowledge-making resources beyond the walls of the
academy, in the social and professional cultures of the communities that
nurture those disciplines and institutions.
ISSUES, QUESTIONS & PERSPECTIVES
* Philosophical perspectives: exploring issues of power, authority and
interested knowledge in academic disciplines.
* Social perspectives: exploring issues of representation, imperialism
and ideology in academic practices.
* Historical perspectives: exploring the development of particular academic
disciplines and professional practices.
* Linguistic perspectives: exploring how language can be used to either support
or impede interdisciplinary communication.
* Changes in professional practices and how they affect tertiary and
secondary curricula, and vice versa.
* The effects of foreign language education on cultures and knowledge systems.
* How are tertiary institutions responding to changes in society?
* How do discourse practices influence conceptions of knowledge?
* To what extent are non-Western societies resisting Western academic and
professional models or adapting them to their own cultural needs and settings?
>>>INVITED SPEAKERS>>
*Steve Fuller* will give the keynote address. He is Professor of Sociology
at Durham, founder-editor of the journal `Social Epistemology', and is one
of the leading figures in the Sociology of Science. His willingness to
challenge orthodoxy is shown in his recent book "Philosophy, rhetoric and
the end of knowledge".
*Kalpana Ram* works on the Gender Relations Project at ANU in Canberra, and
is a prominent voice speaking out for the rights of women in the Asian
sub-continent; see her recent book: "Mukkuvar women: gender, hegemony and
capitalist transformation in a South Indian fishing community".
*Michel Callon* is Director of the Centre de Sociologie de l'Innovation at
the Ecole Superieure des Mines in Paris, and is perhaps best-known
internationally for his seminal work on Actor Network Theory. See his book
`Science and its networks', Paris: La Decouverte (in French), and many
articles on the subject.
*Gu Yue Guo* is Pro-President of the Beijing Foreign Studies University, and
did his doctoral work in linguistics at the University of Lancaster. A
noted comparative linguistic scholar, he will examine the discursive
complexities and changes to be found in contemporary China, exploring the
diverse cultural influences prompting those changes.
*Allan Luke* is shortly taking up the Chair of Education at the University
of Queensland in Brisbane. He is currently working on a number of critical
literacy projects, and is chief editor of Falmer Press's acclaimed
"Critical Literacy" series.
*Ligia Parra-Esteban* is Director of the Foundation for the Investigation of
Communication between Scientists in Bogota, Colombia; she will be discussing
the role that established mechanisms of science communication play in the
development of research in `peripheral science' countries.
*Alastair Pennycook* of the Department of Applied Linguistics at the
University of Melbourne is an increasingly prominent critic of
psycholinguistic approaches to language study, and of the worldwide hegemony
of the English language. His recent book "The cultural politics of English
as an international language" won the British Association of Applied
Linguists' 1995 book prize.
LANGUAGE: Our invited speakers, then, cover a spectrum of nationalities,
cultures, disciplines and language groups - Chinese, Hindi, Spanish, French
and English. We are aware of the irony of having the last of these
languages, English, as the language of expression at the conference.
English has done most to promote particular (Western) versions of knowledge
at the expense of local and regional knowledges and languages. We felt,
though, that English was likely to ensure either the greatest level of
mutual comprehension among participants or at least the most widely shared
vehicle for debate. Accepting diversity of language of expression would
have had to be without exception, and from experience we believe would have
tended to result in communication among, rather than between, participants
from different language groups.
COMMUNICATION: We are hoping that participants will bear in mind that
multidisciplinary communication involves making concessions to the plurality
and the only partial overlap of the discourses participants will have access
to. What participants WILL share - some of the perspectives described above
- - should ensure a degree of mutual understanding. What will enhance that
understanding will be the grounding of our ideas, critiques and theories in
examples and accounts drawn from our practices and our working contexts.
PARTICIPANTS: We welcome the participation of all teachers, researchers,
students and professional practitioners engaged in inter-disciplinary and
cross-disciplinary contexts or projects, and investigating, inter alia :
* the history, philosophy and sociology of particular disciplines.
* knowledge construction within/between different disciplines & professions
* the communication used between academics and professionals both
across and within the boundaries of different disciplines.
* pan-disciplinary issues, such as those of gender, race and ethnicity,
class, and culture in academic disciplines and professional practices.
TYPES OF PRESENTATION: Papers, workshops, poster sessions and colloquia.
We welcome theoretical considerations, practical case studies and
methodological contributions which may either challenge or confirm current
paradigms and practices. The research contexts may be cross-disciplinary
research projects, teaching projects, activities or experiments.
THE ORGANISERS WOULD LIKE TO ASSURE ALL POTENTIAL PARTICIPANTS of their
belief in pluralism, diversity and change, in mutual tolerance, and in the
equal rights of all peoples to pursue their own beliefs and ideas, so long
as these are not inconsistent with a respect for those rights in others.
We hope you will forward this E-MAIL message to colleagues and associates
you think will be interested in this conference.
WHAT FOLLOWS is the more detailed information about:
*How to submit an abstract
*How to register
*What to do about accommodation & travel
******************
>ABSTRACTS>
*If you would like to present*, please submit an abstract of about one A4
page (200-300 words) outlining the mode of presentation, title and content
of your paper, and your name and most convenient form of address.
*Deadlines*
Receipt of abstracts: 15th January 1996
Notification of acceptance: a.s.a.p. & before 15th February 1996
Receipt of full text: 30th April 1996
*Submit your abstract* either -
as hard copy by post to :
Conference '96 Secretary
English Centre
University of Hong Kong
Pokfulam Road
HONG KONG
* or by e-mail to :
kandd at hkucc.hku.hk
* * * * * * * * * * * *
REGISTRATION
*Registration Fees*
Up to 31st March 1996 US$ 80 / HK$ 600
>>From 1st April 1996 US$ 100 / HK$ 750
*A note about "How to Pay"*
If paying from a bank account situated outside Hong Kong, please send a
BANK cheque and not a personal cheque, in either US or HK dollars, made out
to "The University of Hong Kong". Thanks!
There is a Registration Form below
* * * * * * * * * *
ACCOMMODATION
We recommend that you book accommodation as far in advance of arriving in
Hong Kong as you can, especially if you would like to stay on H.K.U.
Campus, at the Robert Black College.
* Accommodation on campus:
A limited number of rooms with air-conditioning, private bath or shower,
refrigerator and colour TV are available in Robert Black College; breakfast
included; lunch and dinner can be provided. Daily room rates and the
College's registration fee are as follows:
Single occupancy: US$ 60.00 / HK$ 462.00
Double occupancy: US$ 75.00 / HK$ 561.00
College registration fee: US$ 6.50 / HK$ 50.00 per person
PLEASE BOOK EARLY.
Advance payment for the first night's accommodation is requested at the
time of booking, and should you want to cancel, two month's written notice
is required for refund of deposit.
* Accommodation in town:
Budget accommodation can be found in hostels from around US$35.00 (HK$250)
per night.
Moderate hotel prices in Hong Kong start from around US$100.00 (HK$800) for
a standard room.
HOSPITALITY & SOCIAL
There will be a welcoming reception and, nearer the time, details will be
circulated about informal evenings at a variety of restaurants around town
to which delegates are invited on a cost share basis.
We will send, on request, a Hong Kong Tourist Board brochure featuring
information on what Hong Kong has to offer, and addresses of their offices
in various parts of the world.
____________________________________________
* REGISTRATION FORM * : "KNOWLEDGE AND DISCOURSE"
To register, please print out the following form (or write your own details
in a similar format, if the form doesn't come out well) and return it, with
your details and your cheque (payable to "The University of Hong Kong"), to
us at - KandD 96, The English Centre, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam
Road, HONG KONG.
Name :
Do you plan to give a presentation? : YES / NO
Which Type? (please circle) : Paper : Workshop : Colloquium : Poster
Postal Address (and for conference programme) :
Rapid Contact Address (e-mail, fax, etc.)
Presentation Title
Registration Fee = US$ / HK$ ...........
Accommodation
at Robert Black, on HKU campus
Single / Double room for .......... nights = US$ / HK$ ...........
plus College Reg. Fee = US$ / HK$ ...........
I enclose a bank draft/bank cheque for = US$ / HK$ ...........
____________________________________________
* * * * * * * * * *
For latest information you can reach us at :
* e-mail : kandd at hkucc.hku.hk
* WWW : http://www.hku.hk/engctr/kandd.html
* fax : (852) 2547 3409
* tel : (852) 2859 2004
We hope to see you in Hong Kong next June.
Knowledge & Discourse Conference
Organising Committee
The English Centre,
7F, K.K. Leung Bdg.,
University of Hong Kong
Pokfulam Road,
HONG KONG.
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