Dr Kayoko Hashimoto's application for the Queensland Program for Japanese Education (QPJE) 2015 Japanese Studies (Research) Grants has been successful. She will be traveling to Japan for data collection for her project entitled “"Yasashii Nihongo" as a language choice: Views of local governments on the promotion of Easy Japanese".

A huge congratulations to Dr Felicity Meakins who has received top honours as the recipient of the Research Engagement Award at this year’s Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Research Awards. Felicity was acknowledged for her work with Indigenous communities on ensuring the preservation of their languages after current elders have passed away.

Adjunct Professor Roger Pulvers has been awarded the 9th Inoue Yasushi Prize. The Prize was established in 2006 at the University of Sydney by the Inoue Yasushi Memorial Foundation/Inoue Family and Masanori Ohtani in Sydney to encourage research and researchers of Japanese Literature in Australia and NZ. Roger received his award at the ceremony which was held on 18 September in Sydney.

Dr Noriko Iwashita and a team from the School have had their tender to do a literature review for the senior school syllabus in languages accepted by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority. The project aims to evaluate the current senior secondary curriculum (Modern Languages) in Queensland. It includes an initial fine-grained analysis to identify discrete learning opportunities in senior secondary Modern Language subjects and VET offerings and comparison with equivalent curricula in Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia at the national level, and curricula from the UK, Canada and New Zealand will be used at the international level. A thorough investigation of the material will be conducted to identify the similarities and differences with the Queensland model in the areas including learning expectations and outcomes, pedagogical approaches and assessment procedures, pathways and prerequisites and the positioning of subjects within learning areas compared with the F(P)-10 Australian learning areas, and implications for future development of the QCAA Modern Languages syllabus. Researchers involved in this program include Noriko Iwashita, Marisa Cordella, Adriana Diaz, Barbara Hanna, Belinda Kennett (UQ), Judith Rochecouste (Monash University) and San Hee Ok Kim (University of Auckland).

 

Dr Sol Rojas-Lizana's graphic novel Historias clandestinas was presented by its co-author Ariel Rojas Lizana in September at a forum at University of Santiago in Chile called: ‘The history of Chile in panels: Graphic Novels and cartoons as resource to teach history at school’. Well done to Sol. 

Congratulations to Lily Wang who welcomed a baby boy on 16 September. Lily lectures in Chinese and in our MACTI program and we wish her all the best for her new addition.