Subject Centre for Languages Linguistics and Area Studies

The Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies (LLAS) is one of 24 subject centres of the Higher Education Academy in the United Kingdom, formed in 2000 as part of the Learning and Teaching Support Network, LLAS is hosted by the University of Southampton. It has a UK-wide remit to support teachers of languages, linguistics and area studies in UK higher education. It is funded via HEFCE, HEFCW, SFC and DELNI.

LLAS activities are supported and informed by a number of advisory committees, made up of academics representing languages, linguistics and area studies disciplines. The largest of these committees is the Advisory Board, but there are also Specialist Advisory groups for each of the three subject areas. There are also advisory groups for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and a number of special interest groups (SIGs) including 'literature and culture' and a group for teachers of "Less Widely Used Less Taught" languages (LWULT).

LLAS has a partnership with CILT, The National Centre for Languages.

The Director of LLAS is Michael Kelly, who is also Professor of French at Southampton University. Other staff include a team of academic co-ordinators, a web development team, and an administration team.

Activities

Academic development

LLAS organizes a variety of staff development workshops, conferences and seminars. It publishes research and reports relating to the teaching of languages, linguistics and area studies.[1] LLAS also provides funding for pedagogic research, action research and the development of teaching materials.[2] The LLAS website also includes the peer-reviewed Good Practice Guide [3]

Promotional materials

LLAS has also produced materials to help teachers and university lecturers promote languages, linguistics and American Studies in schools and further education colleges.

Routes into languages

LLAS hosts the England-wide Routes into Languages project which is funded by HEFCE, the Higher Education Funding Council for England (£4.5 million) and the Department for Children, Schools and Families (£3.5 million).[4] Routes into Languages aims to increase the take-up for modern foreign languages in English primary and secondary schools, and promote careers in translating and interpreting.[5][6]

Links into languages

Links into Languages provides staff development for language teachers in English primary schools and secondary schools delivered via regional centres. 'Links' is led by LLAS in partnership with the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust(SSAT) and the Association for Language Learning (ALL).[7]

Liaison magazine

LLAS publishes Liaison magazine twice a year. The magazine contains news, feature articles and book reviews. It is distributed free to UK subscribers in print form and is available on the LLAS website in pdf format.[8]

Externally funded projects

LLAS produced the HEFCE funded International Approaches to Islamic Studies' in partnership with the Subject Centre for Philosophical and Religious Studies.

Other projects include the EU-funded Language Cafe,[9] the Language Network for Quality Assurance (LANQUA)[10] and HumBox, a repository for sharing open educational resources in the humanities.[11] LLAS also a partner in the Higher Education Academy's Islamic Studies Network.[12]

External links

Notes and references

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