ATJ's annual Thursday Seminar, to be held on March 9, 2000, provides a chance for all ATJ members to gather, meet and talk with colleagues, participate in the business of the Association, and hear the latest research on language, linguistics, pedagogy, and literature. This year's Seminar will be held in San Diego, CA, in conjunction with the annual conference of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), at the Town and Country Resort and Convention Center.
The full schedule for this year's Seminar, including times and room assignments, can be found here. The Seminar will feature a full day of concurrent presentations on linguistics, pedagogy, second-language acquisition, and literature. Please take special note of the day's last event--a panel of past presidents of the Association, who will help us reflect on where we've been and what lies ahead for the field.
The Seminar is open to all ATJ members and their guests: no advance registration is required. However, if you wish to also attend sessions of the AAS conference, which will be held at the same venue March 9-12, it is necessary to register, either in advance (by Feb. 14) or on-site. On-line early registration can be conducted at the AAS web site, www.aasianst.org.
We cordially invite all ATJ members to attend the annual general membership meeting on March 11, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. The membership meeting is your chance to meet ATJ's officers and Board members and to participate in making decisions that affect the Association. As usual, there will be door prizes donated by publishers who specialize in books on Japanese language pedagogy and Japanese studies.
The larger AAS conference is an opportunity to attend panel sessions on a variety of subjects, find out what is happening in the fields of Japan and Asia Studies, see the latest books and instructional materials in the exhibit hall, and meet colleages and friends. Of particular interest to ATJ members at this year's conference will be the ATJ-sponsored Roundtable "Between/Beyond Cultures: The Teaching and Learning of Heritage Languages in North America." Chaired by Prof. Eri Yasuhara of California State University - Los Angeles, the panel will take place on Friday, March 10, at 3:15 p.m. Other sessions at the AAS conference will focus on creating electronic curricula, historical fiction in postwar Japan, Japanese ethnolinguistic origins, and shifting identities in Japanese literature.
Information on registering and attending the AAS conference is available from the AAS office (1021 East Huron St., Ann Arbor, MI 48104); by e-mail at annmtg@aasianst.org; or on the Web at www.aasianst.org. The ATJ office can also supply information on conference registration.
All of the conference events will take place at the Town and Country Resort and Convention Center, 500 Hotel Circle North, San Diego, CA. If you wish to stay at the Town and Country in order to attend either the ATJ Seminar or the AAS conference, please phone the hotel at 1-800-772-8527 or fax 1-619-291-3584.; when registering, mention the AAS conference to receive a special discounted room rate.