Description
This Reading Group will read Kramsch (2021) and read/watch/listen to any other relevant literature and multimedia resources together as a group and community of critical applied linguists at various career stages.
Sign-up (required)
Limited seats are available for the Reading Group. To check the availability of your seat and sign up, please visit the Qualtrics form here.
Required Reading & Materials
Kramsch, C. (2021). Language as symbolic power. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108869386
*In-person participants: Please bring your laptop or tablet as you might be asked to join Zoom’s breakout discussion
Meeting Schedule
We meet every Wednesday between 5:00–6:30 pm (PDT) throughout the summer 2024 on the following schedule.
Our meetings are hybrid: PCN 1306A is available for UBC participants (highly encouraged). Zoom is also available for colleagues based in different parts of the world (plz contact me for a Zoom link).
| Meeting Date | Required Reading | Facilitator |
|---|---|---|
| July 3 | Introduction (pp. 1–16) | Masaru Yamamoto |
| July 10 | Chap 1 (pp. 19–37) “I Speak, Therefore I Am” | Alex R. |
| July 17 | Chap 2 (pp. 38–57) “The Power of Symbolic Representation” | Serikbolsyn T. |
| July 24 | Chap 3 (pp. 58–76) “Narratives of Power—The Power of Narrative” | TBD |
| July 31 | Chap 4 (pp. 79–96) “I Do Things with Words, Therefore I Am” | TBD |
| August 7 | Chap 5 (pp. 97–116) “From Symbolic Power to Symbolic Violence” | Takako Y. |
| August 14 | Chap 6 (pp. 117–131) “When Symbolic Violence Turns into Symbolic Warfare” | TBD |
| August 21 | Chap 7 (pp. 135–153) “I Am Seen and Talked About, Therefore I Am” | TBD |
| August 28 | Chap 8 (pp. 154–173) “Language as Symbolic Power in the Digital Age” | Raymond P. |
| Sept 4 | Chapter 9 (pp. 174–194) “Engaging with Symbolic Power—Responding to Symbolic Violence” Conclusion (pp. 195–211) | Ryo M. |
Engaging in KRG Activities:
General Rules
We want to see this reading group a safe and caring space and community.
Everyone is a valuable contributor.
It’s okay to make “mistakes” or ask “silly” questions. They are great sources of learning, and we are all learning in different ways.
Even though English functions as a de facto primary mode of communication, translanguaging and transsemiotization is actively encouraged.
Before Meeting
Read the required reading as you take notes of your comments (general & critical), questions, problems, “Idk-s”
Make any annotated comments and questions on the shared file [optional but highly encouraged]
If you are the facilitator for the week, please have your materials ready for group discussion (see facilitator guides below)
At the Meeting
Share announcements, exciting updates, news, interesting resources
Discuss the Required Reading (by Facilitator):
Wrap up the meeting
Leading the Discussion
The Facilitator’s primary role is to guide the group to engage in active and in-depth discussions of themes discussed in the book, in critical applied linguistics, and/or even in society broadly. We want the first few slides/minutes to cover key points from the chapter, but do not dedicate an entire time on the summary as we want to have active discussions based on the reading. Other than this, the facilitator is free to pick any discussion format and content based on the reading
Oh, and another note… let’s NOT spend too much time & energy on discussion preps, as we all know we are super busy people!!!! Let’s limit ourselves to no more than 10–12 content slides; slide aesthetics doesn’t matter here.
Below is a guiding structure that you can freely adapt according to your preferred content and presentation style! It’s just here to help structure—never to constrain—your creative work.
Guiding Structure (feel free to ignore me)
Greetings + Land Acknowledgement
A brief positionality statement vis-à-vis your own research theme, (potential) research participants, the field of (critical) applied linguistics, and the assigned reading
Summarize 2–3 key points and concepts briefly in the first 3–4 slides (10-ish minutes)
Engage the group in active discussions in other remaining slides; some strategies include: prepare discussion questions, invite questions or comments from peers, use peers’ annotated questions & comments, letting others just speak / letting it go
Concluding comments
Last updated: July 14, 2024 [5:00 pm PDT]
Masaru Yamamoto 