The 2014 NATESOL Conference, which is organised in association with the IATEFL Literature, Media & Cultural Studies SIG, is set to take place on 10th May 2014 (9 am – 5 pm), in Salford City College, Walkden Campus, Manchester.

The conference theme  is “Transferring identity from the page to the classroom:  contemporary literature as a resource for language learners.” In the words of the conference organisers:

Identity is one of the main areas of concern in all areas of contemporary literature in English. With greater mobility, and the freedom to travel more widely than ever before, people today confront themselves and the question of who they are and where they belong more frequently than in the past. Creative writing mirrors these questions closely, and presents fascinating insights into the way human beings deal with them.

The conference aims to acquaint participants with contemporary writing in English, as it relates to the notion of identity (or identities). Furthermore, it seeks to explore how literary texts can be pedagogically used, “both to help learners investigate their own sense of identity and to express that identity through the medium of a second language”.

Proposals are invited for 50-minute workshops on topics such as (indicatively):

• examinations of the work of particular writers;
• different approaches to identity taken by a range of writers;
• practical ideas for using texts dealing with identity in the classroom.

Proposals should be sent to both the conference organisers: Mike Beaumont (michael.beaumont[at]zen.co[dot]uk) and David A. Hill (futured[at]hu.inter[dot]net) by Friday 28th February 2014.

(hat tip: the Doctoral Community at LTE )