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Friday 17 December 2010

Wednesday 15 December 2010

Read-in this Saturday in London

http://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2010/12/15/thomas-jones/read-in-saturday/

Charity of the year - JustGiving Page now up

If you want to donate or cite the page for an event, the JustGiving page for our Charity of the Year 2011 is here: http://www.justgiving.com/easredcross

Feedback on modules

How can I complete the questionnaire?

http://www.studentnet.manchester.ac.uk/

VIA YOUR STUDENT PORTAL!

When can I complete the questionnaire?

ANY TIME ANY DAY until the 11 February 2011

Your opinion counts! Complete your Unit Evaluation Questionnaires and have your say!

Manchester Milton

The Manchester Milton Marathon went very well on Friday, including a visit from the BBC, and all involved enjoyed themselves. Thanks to the readers, those who sponsored us, to everyone who brought food, and Liam Haydon for all the organisation and enthusiasm. The whole poem took us around 11 hours to read out and we were exhausted by the end! With donations on the day the amount raised for the RNIB is around £820, which is magnificent.

Thursday 9 December 2010

Milton Marathon running order

Paradise Lost Timetable


Please note that all times are approximate, so could readers please arrive in plenty of time at the start of the book in which you are reading to ensure the smooth flow of the day.

Book I [9.15 – 10.00]

1-191: Jerome de Groot
192-375: Graham Ward
*376-621: Liam Haydon
622-798 [End]: Naya Tsentourou

Book II [10.00 – 10.45]

1-225: Isabelle Dann
226-416: Anke Bernau
417-628: Will Simpson
629-814: Joel Swann
815-1055 [End]: Megan Venter

Book III [10.45 – 11.25]

1-216: Carolyn Broomhead
217-343: Anke Bernau
344-554: Kayleen Devlin
*555-742 [End]: Rachel Willie

Book IV [11.25-12.25]

1-171: Liam Haydon
171-392: Hannah Priest
393-609: Nichi McCawley
610-796: Mark Littler
797-1015 [End]: Kate Ash

Book V [12.25 – 13.25]

1-208: Irene Huhulea
209-387: Rachel Jardine
388-599: Louise Machen
600-742: Gale Owen-Crocker
743-907 [End]: Stephen Gordon

Book VI [13.25 – 14.25]

1-188: Mike Sanders
189-385: Rachel Willie
386-567: Sarah Hardy
568-745: Laura Swift
*746-912 [End]: Mike Collier

Book VII [14.25-15.00]

1-215: Ishbel Saxton
216-448: Rhian Atkin
449-640 [End]: Rob Spencer?

Book VIII [15.00-15.35]

1-216: Mike Addelman
217-451: Emma Martindale
452-653 [End]: Hal Gladfelder

Book IX [15.35-16.35]

1-204: Patricia Campbell
205-375: Paul Reilly
376-566: Joel Swann
567-779: Verity Emanuel
780-989: Nichi McCawley
990-1189 [End]: James Smith

Book X [16.35-17.30]

1-208: Rachel Willie
209-459: Ian Pople
460-640: Laura Swift
641-908: Laura Henshaw
909-1104 [End]: Mike Collier

Book XI [17.30 – 18.25]

1-225: Naya Tsentourou
226-452: JT Welsch
453-683: Irene Huhulea
684-901 [End]: Joel Swann

Book XII [18.25-19.00]

1-269: Iain Bailey
270-465: Jerome de Groot
466-649 [End]: Liam Haydon

N.B. That the marking * indicates a section that does not begin with an indent.

Come down and support the Milton marathon on Friday!

The Milton marathon takes place on Friday from 9am in room A4. Come down to listen, have a muffin, and support the epic reading:
http://www.justgiving.com/paradiselost2010/

Tuesday 7 December 2010

Open letter to David Willetts from the Council for College and University English


CHAIR of CCUE                       
Professor Linda Anderson
School of English Literature,
Language and Linguistics
Newcastle University
Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 7RU   
Tel: 0191 2228059
           
                                  6th December, 2010


 To the Right Honourable David Willetts,


Open Letter from the Council for College and University English

As University teachers of English, we urge you to reconsider your proposals for the withdrawal of public funding for the teaching of the Humanities and Social Sciences.

We are deeply concerned both by the rapidity with which decisions are being made, and the ill-considered assumptions that underlie the proposals. According to the Browne report, just fifty hours of panel time have been devoted to ‘scrutinising the evidence, examining the options for reform and testing the recommendations’. A week, or slightly more, to remodel the entire basis of teaching in Britain’s Universities?

It is not clear to us that the market alone is an effective way of managing higher education; nor does it appear that any serious work has been done to predict the ways in which the proposed changes to that market will affect Higher Education institutions and the national and regional economies across the UK. The proposals are based upon assumptions about the different levels of economic and social utility of subjects in the Arts and Humanities on the one hand and those in the so called STEM area on the other. But the evidence of the last fifty years of Higher Education has demonstrated clearly that the skills, experiences and ideas that ‘non- priority’ subjects such as English provide are as fundamental to business as they are to the public sector. Society will be poorer for a lack of public investment in the arts and humanities; but business will be too.

Across a wide range of sectors graduates in English bring immense value to UK culture and the UK economy, making use of the rigorous critical training and advanced communication skills provided by University departments.

How can it make sense – in economic or any other terms – to withdraw public support from the teaching of subjects such as English in our Universities, with no serious analysis of either the assumptions guiding the decisions or their likely effects?



Professor Linda Anderson
on behalf of Council for College and University English
 

Feedback on modules

You will be asked to give feedback on modules in two ways over the next two weeks.

Firstly, seminar leaders will circulate EAS questionnaires, which are designed to have you consider how you have learnt, what helped your development, and if there are any ways that we can alter the course in order to ensure that in future it is the best it can be. Please fill these in seriously and carefully, as we use them to reflect upon our teaching and to enhance your experience here at Manchester.

Secondly, you will be asked to fill in more broader University questionnaires via your Student Portal. Again, please do consider your responses and think about the ways in which we have supported your learning through seminar teaching, feedback, office hours, library resourcing, and lectures.

Monday 6 December 2010

Council for College and University English OGM, 4 December

Our CCUE representative attended the OGM on Saturday, held in the School of Advanced Legal Study in Central London.

Representatives from English Literature and American Studies departments around the UK were met together to talk about the state of the subject and its future. In particular there was a discussion of 'impact' and how this might affect work in the discipline - how scholars might think about judging the cultural, social and economic import and effect of their research.

John Tusa gave an invigorating lecture calling upon the discipline to fight back against the coming cuts. He argued that the debate was impossible to win and instead of engaging with it the community should put its own points assertively and repeatedly, pointing out the success that the Arts community had had in arguing for continued funding since the late 1990s.

There was a fun panel on interdisciplinarity, pointing out the really good work and potential benefits of working with non-Higher Education Institutions from the Welsh National Assembly to the Royal Institution.

The closure of the English Subject Centre (http://www.english.heacademy.ac.uk/) was lamented and there is a petition to sign - whether you are a undergraduate, postgraduate or staff member this organisation is invaluable and important. Please support it: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/HEAsubjectcentre

CCUE also agreed to prepare a statement deploring the government attitude to the Arts and Humanities and the ending of the teaching grant.  

Don't forget to sponsor Friday's Marathon Milton reading!

http://www.justgiving.com/paradiselost2010

Sunday 5 December 2010

EAS message of support for student actions and occupations

Staff and postgraduate students from the English and American Studies in Manchester wish to convey their support for the occupation of the Roscoe Building and the ongoing student-led actions around the country in protest at the government’s wilful vandalising of the Higher Education sector.

The undersigned believe that the ending of government funding for the teaching of the Humanities and Social Sciences will alter the very nature of Higher Education. Cutting funding to the arts, humanities and social sciences undervalues the contributions of these subject areas to the economy, culture, and society of the UK (and the world).

The proposed measures will commercialise and commodify HE in a way that is quite at odds with free expression and the teaching of independent thought.

Putting the burden of funding onto students by the massive raising of tuition fees will be socially divisive and will lead to greater social inequality. The ending of the EMA scheme and the closure of AimHigher will ensure that those from poorer backgrounds will be excluded further.

We therefore support our students in their resistance to these regressive and unfair cuts.

Anke Bernau
Geoffrey Ryman
Robert Mitchell
James Smith
Noelle Gallagher
Humaira Saeed
Jerome de Groot
Michael Sanders
Benjamin Ware
Laura Doan
Liam Haydon
David Brown
Muzna Rahman
Carolyn Broomhead
Rebecca Pohl
Jade Munslow Ong
Irene Huhulea
Kaye Mitchell
Liam Harte
Iain Bailey
Robert Spencer
Geoff Ryman
Eithne Quinn
Howard Booth
Henry Thompson
Hal Gladfelder
Letizia Alterno
David Matthews
Jennie Chapman
Carys Crossen
David Alderson
Michael Bibler
Brian Ward
Andrew Frayn
Patricia Duncker
Jackie Pearson
Monica Pearl

Friday 3 December 2010

Student and staff - emergency meeting

NUS and UCU are calling an emergency meeting today at 5 p.m. following the announcement of the scheduling of the Higher Education vote in Parliament for next Thursday. Roscoe LT B, all welcome.

Thursday 2 December 2010

WE NEED YOUR FEEDBACK!

Dear Student,

From today, Wednesday the 1st December the online Unit Evaluation Questionnaire will go live for you to provide feedback and evaluate the course units which you have been taking during this semester. Your opinions really do matter.

Why complete a questionnaire?
                                      
WE ACT ON YOUR COMMENTS!

You said that you wanted good quality, fast feedback on your assessed work – we implemented the Policy on Feedback in September 2010 which includes a 15 day feedback policy.

You said you wanted more library staff available during the 24 hour opening period, more staff have been made available during peak periods.

The results of the questionnaires will be collated and reviewed by senior academics within the School and Faculty, and appropriate actions will be taken as a result of your feedback.

How can I complete the questionnaire?

http://www.studentnet.manchester.ac.uk/

VIA YOUR STUDENT PORTAL!

When can I complete the questionnaire?

ANY TIME ANY DAY until the 11 February 2011

Your opinion counts! Complete your Unit Evaluation Questionnaires and have your say!

What do you do? Mo Saqib, NUS Humanities Faculty Officer

Mo Saqib - Humanities Faculty Officer

Hi there, my name's Mo and I get to be your Humanities Faculty Officer for the next year! With 15,000 students, I represent the biggest faculty at the university, so I look forward to meeting as many of you as I can. This also means I'll be dealing with a huge range of issues in trying to make your university lives go as smoothly as possible; so if you ever need help with anything, do get in touch and I'll do my best to assist you (and it doesn't matter whether or not you're a Humanities student, as the Exec we're here to help all 40,000 of you!).



You can get in touch via email to: humanities@umsu.manchester.ac.uk

Emergency meeting on Friday

The vote on whether to rise tuitions fees has finally been announced for Thursday 9th December. That gives us a week to act!

Please come to this emergency meeting tomorrow at 5pm in the Roscoe Occupation to make plans for the week.

Amanda Walters, NUS Campaigns Officer

Wednesday 1 December 2010

Research Seminar today on Shakespeare, all welcome

Roger Holdsworth, 'Marriage and Misogyny in The Winter's Tale', Poetry Centre (A4), 4pm, all welcome

JdG Powerpoint for teach-in, 1-3 today

EAS Charity of the year 2011

The EAS Charity of the Year will be the Red Cross, voted for by a large number of you.
 
We will have activities and events throughout the year to support their excellent work. If you want to do something to support them please contact Jerome de Groot. You might want to run the Manchester 10k, do a sponsored reading, wear red, ride around London at night, give time or donations to the shop in Chorlton, or sit in a bath of beans.

There are some quick ways to start helping here:
http://www.redcross.org.uk/Get-involved/Get-fundraising/Recycle-for-us
http://www.redcross.org.uk/Get-involved/Get-fundraising/Help-in-other-ways
http://www.redcross.org.uk/Get-involved/Get-fundraising/Organise-an-event

The first organised event for 2011will be the Pub QEAS, in early February - watch this space for date and location....