GUST Hosts Second International English Language and Literature Conference

Kuwait City, 7 April 2015: Gulf University of Science and Technology (GUST) will launch the second GUST English Language and Literature (GELL) conference on the 21st of April 2015. The conference will explore the theme”The Challenges of Teaching Foreign Languages and Literatures”, with a particular focus on teaching the English language in the Middle East and North Africa. The event will cover the span of3 days, and is largely funded by the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS), with sponsorship also coming from Naseej Arabian Advanced Systems and That Al-Salasil Retail Company.

{xtypo_rounded3} •Leading poets, authors, and translators from the Middle East, North Africa, UK, and the US, presenting their works and holding keynote speeches. {/xtypo_rounded3} {xtypo_rounded3} •The three-day conference is sponsored by the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences. {/xtypo_rounded3}

The conference is arranged around scholarly panel discussions, literary readings from novels and poetry; and creative writing and pedagogical workshops. The panel discussions with explore topics such as creative writing poetry for university teachers of English Studies students, translation and language pedagogy, linguistics & meaning-making, among other subjects. There will also be keynote speecheson cultural imperialism in the MENA countries,ethics in translation, and one on the advantages and cognitive gains of bilingualism.

Among the featured guests are poet James Sutherland-Smith, the Middle East literary scholar; novelist Robert Irwin, the philosopher and cultural theorist;CosticaBradaton, the translation scholar Mona Baker.

Dr. IkramElSherif, chairwoman of the Conference Organizing Committee said, “This event is not only meant to attract specialists in the English education field, it is also important for anyone interested in how culture is influenced when a new language is introduced.”

This conference is open to the public, and attendance of presentation sessions is free. However, to attend the opening and closing ceremonies, lunches and to receive a conference package, a fee of KD20 must be paid. For more information visit the official GELL website: https://gellconference.gust.edu.kw