2009 Semester Two Seminar Series
Seminars will be held on Fridays from 2.30 - 4.00pm, in
Seminar room G25, Ground floor, Social Sciences Bldg., UWA. All
welcome!
Inquiries: Leonie Stickland, ext. 2895, email: leonies@arts.uwa.edu.au
28 August
Dr Malcolm
Mintz (Hon Research Fellow, Asian Studies)
Title: Planting Rice at the Turn of the 16th Century
This paper looks at how rice was planted, harvested, sold, cooked
and eaten at the turn of the 16th century in the Bikol region of
the Philippines. This was a time just 30 years after the arrival
of the Spanish in the region, and the techniques used would most
likely reflect those found during the pre-Hispanic period.
Examined first is the establishment of lowland rice fields and
the types of rice that were planted, followed by a more detailed
discussion of clearing, working and irrigating the fields.
Considered next is the sowing, germination, transplanting and
maturation of the rice in the field, including a section on
protecting rice from its natural predators.
All aspects of the rice harvest follow: gathering rice from the
fields, threshing, drying, pounding, winnowing, milling, storing
and transportation. The penultimate section of the paper looks at
the cooking, serving and eating of rice, and the final section on
measurement and transactions.
2 October
Dr Lenore Lyons (Research Professor, Asian
Studies)
Title: Smuggling cultures in the Indonesia-Singapore
borderlands This paper examines the unauthorised movement of goods across the border to and from Indonesia’s Riau Islands from the perspective of local agents of the state as well as the individuals who smuggle and/or consume these ‘illegal’ goods. We argue that many individuals who live in the Riau Islands regard smuggling as a natural part of life in the islands and consider their involvement in smuggling or their purchase of smuggled goods as legitimate acts that reflect the special character of border life.
This constitutes what we describe as a ‘local ecology’ of licitness, within which local state involvement in smuggling is seen at least in part as a reaction to the central government’s inability to recognise and accommodate the needs of these borderland communities. Attention to the issue of scale reveals that local state involvement in ‘illegal’ acts (such as corruption that supports smuggling) is a legitimate response to local needs and the perceived failures of the national government and legal system.
(Co-authored paper with Dr Michele Ford, University of Sydney)
9 October
Dr Leonie Stickland , (Japanese/Asian Studies)
Title: 'Village of Friends': Japan's 'Senior House' aged
accommodation conceptJapan leads the globe as a rapidly-ageing society. As such, the way it addresses the various issues arising from that situation can provide a model for countries like Australia which anticipate similar problems in the future.
This paper introduces the philosophy and structure of the so-called ‘senior house’ concept in residential accommodation for the elderly in Japan. Conceived by a Japanese academic, Komashaku Kimi, and her partner, Konishi Aya, the present network of privately-run ‘senior houses’ provide various levels of care for ageing people according to their needs.
The focus is upon the founders’ final home, the ‘Village of Friends’ they instituted in rural Shizuoka Prefecture. It epitomises their vision of an ideal community where older people can avoid social isolation, living in comfort and safety while enjoying opportunities for education, entertainment, communion with nature and interaction with local people.
23 October
Dr Wendy Jiang (Chinese/Asian
Studies)
Title: Task-based and assessment-driven second language teaching
This talk is meant for information-sharing rather than focusing on a specific research topic. It starts with three images of classroom teaching. After a brief introduction of the nature and definition of language pedagogy, it presents an important model of language pedagogy.
Within this model, task-based teaching is discussed: this includes the nature, characteristics, and principles of task-based teaching and the role of form in task-based teaching. Various examples of teaching tasks along with appropriate scaffolding measures will be provided. This is considered useful for second-language teachers and students who are interested in second-language teaching.
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