Genre 2012–Rethinking Genre Twenty Years Later: An International Conference on Genre Studies
Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
June 26-29, 2012
Genre 2012 will continue the tradition and scholarly conversation that originated with the first international colloquium on Genre Studies, “Rethinking Genre,” organized by now-retired Carleton Professors Aviva Freedman and Peter Medway, which was held at Carleton University in 1992.
2012 will investigate the relevance of genres that people encounter every day, outside of literature. It examines any text that belongs to a recognizable genre—from memos to love letters to scientific articles. The conversation goes beyond the theoretical and can be applied to concrete situations. For example, this perspective has been used to teach new immigrants to be sensitive to genres they may encounter in the workplace.
Providing a renewed impetus to the entire field, Genre 2012 will advance the dialogue and innovative thinking that emerged at Carleton University two decades ago.
The goals of Genre 2012 are the following:
- To create a dialogue among the three major traditions of Genre Studies: (a) English for Specific Purposes (ESP), (b) North American/New Rhetorical Studies, and (c) Australian Systemic Functional Linguistics (the Sydney School);
- To present the most recent research developments in each of these three traditions with respect to writing in academic, workplace, and community settings;
- To explore possible convergences among the three traditions; and
- To provide a communicative space for discussion of other possible approaches to Genre Studies.
Keynote speakers: Charles Bazerman (University of California, Santa Barbara, USA), Vijay Bhatia (City University of Hong Kong), Ken Hyland (University of Hong Kong), James Martin (University of Sydney, Australia), Carolyn Miller (North Carolina State University, USA), David Russell (Iowa State University, USA), Catherine Schryer (Ryerson University, Canada), John Swales (University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, USA).
Special session presenters: Anis Bawarshi (University of Washington, USA), Heidi Byrnes (Georgetown University, USA), Amy Devitt (University of Kansas, USA), Ann Johns (San Diego State University, USA), Anthony Paré (McGill University, Canada), David Rose (University of Sydney, Australia), Clay Spinuzzi (University of Texas at Austin, USA), Christine Tardy (DePaul University, USA).
Conference co-organizers: Natasha Artemeva, Jaffer Sheyholislami, and Graham Smart (Carleton University).
Local organizing committee: Chloe Fogarty-Bourget, Janna Fox, Guillaume Gentil, Clara John Gulli, Lynne Young (Carleton University).
Sponsorship: The conference is sponsored by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and co-sponsored by Carleton University’s Office of the Vice-President (Research and International); Office of the Dean, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences; and the School of Linguistics and Language Studies.
For more information please visit the conference website at: www.carleton.ca/genre2012
