Supporting ELT historical collections elsewhere

Writing about web page https://italy-elt-archive.unimi.it/

Here at the Warwick ELT Archive, we have a developing commitment to supporting collections of historical ELT / English Language Education material elsewhere, in the contexts closest to the practices they relate to. So, for example, in February this year, Prof. Richard Smith helped launch the Dr Michael West Study Centre at the Government Teacher Trainers' College in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where West was Principal from 1920 to 1932:

(more photos here: here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1111269466447827/posts/1132919054282868/)

Aside from compiling a bibliography with links to digitised versions of some of West's publications (see also warwick.ac.uk/elt_archive/halloffame/west/works/) – which those looking after the Study Centre were then able to download and print for consultation on site – Richard also donated a set of his books compiled in 2003 for Routledge, Teaching English as a Foreign Language, 1912–1936: Pioneers of ELT, which contain original works by Percival Wren, Horace Wyatt, Harold Palmer and Lawrence Faucett as well as West; the Introduction to Volume III (on West) and the Volume V Introduction (on the 1934–35 Carnegie Conference which West organized) are also now available online.

Later in the year, in July, we welcomed Emanuela Tenca from the University of Milan, where she is working as a research assistant with Profs. Luciana Pedrazzini and Andrea Nava on the development of the Italy ELT Archive, a collection of materials for Italian learners of English in the 20th century. Emanuela gave a well-received talk on the development of the Italy archive, with Luciana also participating online. The talk was also open to members of our Friends of the ELT Archive Facebook group, which all are welcome to join.

Via these discussions, the Italy ELT Archive project is providing us with new ideas about online presentation of digital and digitalised material, just as we may ourselves have provided some initial inspiration for the Italy project. Now we are looking forward to the official opening of the Italy ELT Archive in September, and looking forward also to ongoing collaboration with researchers there as well as in Bangladesh and elsewhere.

Richard Smith : 27 Aug 2024 16:58 |  Comments (0) |  Report a problem