Plenaries

Dr. Moradewun Adejunmobi is Professor of African American and African Studies at University of California, Davis. She teaches courses in Cultural politics in Africa, Women in Africa, West African Social Organization and development, Literature, Film and performance in Africa. Her research interests include Multilingualism, translation, and intercultural communication in postcolonial societies; Literacy studies; African literature; African popular film and culture; Francophone studies.

Title:

Circulation at scale: Translation and the "African" text

Abstract:

This paper takes recent developments in translating both popular culture and literature texts on the African continent as a basis for interrogating the classifications applied to works that travel beyond the homes of their author/creators. The classifications considered include such terms as world literature and world cinema, but also the very concept of an ‘African’ literature. The making of such classifications cannot be understood apart from an examination of specific trajectories of translation from one language to another, and particular trajectories for circulation of different types of texts. This presentation provides an opportunity for attention to the ways in which translation practices in Africa today reconstitute distinctions between what counts as foreign and what counts as local, as well as between ‘worldly’ and ‘unworldly’ circulation of texts. 

Dr. Sébastien Dubreil is Teaching Professor of French and Francophone Studies, Second Language Acquisition, and Technology-Enhanced Learning at Carnegie Mellon University. Specializing in CALL, his research interests focus on the use of technology in fostering transcultural learning. His most recent research examines the notions of social pedagogies, linguistic landscapes, and game-based language and culture learning. 

Title:

Quest to learn (languages and cultures): Multimedia, maker culture, and social pedagogies in (and out) the French classroom 

Abstract:

What happens when students are placed not only at the center of the learning process but also as primary designers and agents of their learning? This presentation will explore how L2 educators can leverage multimedia technologies to enhance language and culture learning, especially along three primary dimensions: (1) how they can connect learners to authentic discursive; (2) how they can position learners as authors; and (3) how they can situate themselves as educated global citizens in a multilingual world. By opening up the boundaries of language study, students will hopefully learn to work together as designers of knowledge make decisions of consequence, and demonstrate active participation in their own learning. As L2 educators, it is critical that we channel and leverage these tendencies in order to equip our students with the critical thinking and interactional competencies they need in order to understand others and themselves and perhaps ultimately to make a positive impact on the world around them.