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English Academy of Southern Africa conference – ‘Ways of Reading: Literature and Literacy’

25 January 2024

The University of the Free State’s Bloemfontein campus played host to the English Academy of Southern Africa’s (EASA) annual international conference on 7-8 December 2023. Attracting 35 delegates from Canada, the UK, Nigeria, Botswana, and South Africa, the two-day conference delved into the theme, “Ways of Reading: Literature and Literacy,” with a diverse group seeking to unravel the intricate relationship between literature and literacy.

The proceedings were inaugurated by Prof Vasu Reddy, emphasising the importance of exploring how literacy shapes our modes of attention, both culturally and socially. He expressed his faith that the conference would be “generatively disruptive,” noting that “where there is disruption, there is also growth.”

Featuring two eminent keynote speakers, the conference saw Prof David Attwell, Emeritus Professor at the University of York (UK), discussing the connection between translingualism and creativity in a lecture titled, “A Ventriloquial Literature: The Art of ‘Throwing the Voice’ in the South African Canon. On the second day, Dr Karen Jennings, author of the Booker Prize longlisted novel An Island, reflected on “how place and identity are crucial to the act of creation,” with her talk whimsically titled, “Bums in the Ground.”

Delegates approached the conference theme in various ways, with some exploring how specific writers or critical movements have shaped scholarly reading habits. Others highlighted the significance of literacy for social justice. This diversity extended to the interdisciplinary nature of the conference, bringing together scholars working in language practice, literary studies and even the medical humanities.

Convened by Dr Rick de Villiers, a senior lecturer in the Department of English and the regional vice-president of EASA, the conference delighted in attracting scholars from different backgrounds and stages of their careers. “We had a wonderful mix of established and early-career scholars. The atmosphere was rigorous and robust but collegial throughout.”

Speaking on behalf of EASA, Dr De Villiers extended gratitude for the financial and administrative support from the UFS, particularly the Department of English.

News Archive

Research conducted on economic impact of recent international soccer and rugby matches for Bloemfontein

2004-09-09

The Centre for Development Support at the University of the Free State (UFS) recently conducted a survey on the economic impact of the international soccer and rugby games that were played in Bloemfontein earlier this year.

The research focused on the soccer match between Bafana Bafana and the Cape Verdic Isle and the rugby match between the Springboks and Ireland .

“The survey was done as a result of a research agenda about local economic development in Bloemfontein ,” said Dr Lochner Marais, researcher at the centre.

“We conducted the research by doing 402 interviews with soccer supporters and 376 interviews with rugby supporters from outside Bloemfontein ,” said Dr Marais.

The centre distributed questionnaires, collecting the following information on the soccer and rugby supporters: their age, gender and origin, the number of nights spend in Bloemfontein , their household expenditure in Bloemfontein and their rating on the quality of service.

“It is estimated that 10 800 soccer supporters and 27 000 rugby supporters came from outside Bloemfontein . Of the rugby supporters 14,4% were female and 85,6% were men. For the soccer international the percentage was 33% females and 67% males,” said Dr Marais.

The highest number of people who came to watch the soccer game in Bloemfontein (35,8%) was from the Northern Free State . The rugby supporters mainly came from Gauteng (21,8%) and the Northern Free State (18%).

When visiting Bloemfontein soccer supporters spend R912 per household, whilst rugby supporters reached deeper in their pockets and spent R1 807 per household.

“The survey indicated that the two international matches resulted in approximately R58 million been spent in Bloemfontein . Rugby supporters were accountable for the largest part (R48 787 205) spent. The largest chunk of the money spent was on accommodation (R14 593 279). On average soccer and rugby supporters from outside Bloemfontein spent 1,4 and 1,9 nights in Bloemfontein ,” said Dr Marais.

Rugby and soccer supporters were also asked to rate the quality of service received from amongst others hotels, guest houses, restaurants, and transport and entertainment facilities. Soccer supporters rated their satisfaction with services higher as rugby supporters. The rugby supporters gave the services at hotels a 3,9 rating, whilst soccer supporters awarded 4,6 rating out of a possible five.

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel: (051) 401-2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
9 September 2004

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