Dynamics of identity and expression: a three generational study of a community language in post World War 2 Australia. The project examines the rapidly accelerating decline in the home use of German between the 1996 and 2001 Censuses. It utilises an innovative methodology which will correlate general trends accessible via large-scale statistical data from 1976 with the experiences of subgroups, families, and, ultimately, individuals from the early 1950s. As well as contributing to theoretical mo ....Dynamics of identity and expression: a three generational study of a community language in post World War 2 Australia. The project examines the rapidly accelerating decline in the home use of German between the 1996 and 2001 Censuses. It utilises an innovative methodology which will correlate general trends accessible via large-scale statistical data from 1976 with the experiences of subgroups, families, and, ultimately, individuals from the early 1950s. As well as contributing to theoretical model building in the field at an international level, findings will benefit the German-speaking community in Australia, other community language groups facing similar dilemmas and ultimately the nation, enabling more informed management of one of Australia's major resources: its rich linguistic diversity.Read moreRead less
Cultural linguistics and intercultural discourse. This project will develop a theoretical framework for the study of intercultural communication by drawing on the theory of cultural linguistics. Cultural linguistics is a recent sub-field of linguistics which has so far been applied to the study of mono-cultural, monolinguistic data. This study will bring the theory to examine discourse in a significant muli-cultural setting such as Australia. In particular, it will shed light on the nature of mi ....Cultural linguistics and intercultural discourse. This project will develop a theoretical framework for the study of intercultural communication by drawing on the theory of cultural linguistics. Cultural linguistics is a recent sub-field of linguistics which has so far been applied to the study of mono-cultural, monolinguistic data. This study will bring the theory to examine discourse in a significant muli-cultural setting such as Australia. In particular, it will shed light on the nature of miscommunication between people of different cultural backgrounds, which has often led to serious damage to human relationships. This will be achieved by explicating the culturally-constructed conceptualizations that people bring to their intercultural discourse.Read moreRead less
Assessing the intercultural in language learning. The implementation of Intercultural Language Learning (ICLL) is a priority in policy for the Commonwealth and States and is important in developing better understanding of people fro different cultures and countries. A key problem is the development of assessment models. This project is a first investigation of the process and theory of task-based assessment in ICLL and of the process of judgement in assessing languages and interculturality. The ....Assessing the intercultural in language learning. The implementation of Intercultural Language Learning (ICLL) is a priority in policy for the Commonwealth and States and is important in developing better understanding of people fro different cultures and countries. A key problem is the development of assessment models. This project is a first investigation of the process and theory of task-based assessment in ICLL and of the process of judgement in assessing languages and interculturality. The project will contribute to the quality of languages education nationally by enhancing languages teaching and learning and especially the contribution of languages learning to understanding, respecting and engaging with linguistic and cultural diversity, both in Australia and globally.Read moreRead less
The status and conceptualisation of cultural knowledge in language-in-education policy for second/foreign language education. This project aims to develop a coherent understanding of approaches to issues of culture and interculturality in languages-in-education planning and policy for the teaching of second/foreign languages in Australia, Europe, North America and Asia. This will involve both a study of the ways in which culturally focused curriculum and content are included in language-in-educa ....The status and conceptualisation of cultural knowledge in language-in-education policy for second/foreign language education. This project aims to develop a coherent understanding of approaches to issues of culture and interculturality in languages-in-education planning and policy for the teaching of second/foreign languages in Australia, Europe, North America and Asia. This will involve both a study of the ways in which culturally focused curriculum and content are included in language-in-education plans and policies, and a study of the ways in which the cultural component of language education is conceptualised in such plans and policies. These studies will provide a basis for examining the consistency of treatment of culture in language-in-education planning and policy.Read moreRead less