Call for Papers: 12th International Symposium on Bilingualism (ISB12)

CALL FOR PAPERS

The 12^th International Symposium on Bilingualism (ISB12) will take place at the University of Alberta, Canada, 23-28 June, 2019.

The conference theme is “Bilingualism and The Next Generation,” which highlights the importance of the next generation in language maintenance and survival on the one hand, and the importance of the next generation of scholars in moving the field forward on the other. Papers that fit within that theme in some way are particularly eagerly solicited. However, ISB12 invites papers in all areas of research in bilingualism and multilingualism (whether linked to the conference theme or not), including but not limited to: linguistics, sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, applied linguistics, neuropsychology, first and second and third language acquisition, clinical linguistics, language and education, and multilingual societies.

Keynote speakers include: 
- Richard Clément
- Erika Hoff 
- Marco Jacquemet 
- Enric Llurda 
- Roy Lyster 

Invited theme sessions include:
- Bilingualism in the context of World Englishes (organizer: Suzanne Hilgendorf)
- First language learning and the brain (organizer: Thierry Nazzi)
- Heritage language learning in children (organizer: Silvina Montrul) 
- Immersion (organizer: Diane Tedick) 
- Language and thought (organizer: Bene Benedetti)

There will also be a Journée CSJ at the Campus Saint-Jean, the French-language campus of the University of Alberta. Invited theme sessions include:

-French immersion (organizer: Laurent Cammarata)

-Variation and change in regional minority languages (organizers: Nanna Hilton and Anne-José Villeneuve)

Proposals

Abstracts are solicited for three categories of proposals: individual papers, posters, and theme sessions.

• Individual papers: Papers are formal presentations on original research or original pedagogy-focused topics by one or more authors, lasting a total of eighteen minutes with five additional minutes for discussion. Abstracts should be a maximum of 300 words in length.

• Posters: Poster sessions are for displaying original research or pedagogy that offers the opportunity for individualized, informal discussion with others in the field. Posters are especially effective for presenting work-in-progress, fieldwork, and results of empirical research for which data can be presented visually. Posters will be available throughout an entire day of the conference with presenters in attendance for a 90-minute poster session. Abstracts should be a maximum of 300 words in length.

• Theme sessions: Theme sessions allow for extended, interactive discussion on a specific topic, focusing on a cluster of independent papers. Each submission should include either three presentations and a discussant or four presentations, for a total of four “slots”. Submissions must include an abstract for the panel (of a maximum of 500 words in length), as well as for each of the constituent papers (of a maximum of 300 words in length).

Abstracts may be submitted in either English or French, and presentations may also be given in either language. Apart from this, the main working language of ISB12 will be English (we plan to offer interpretation to and from American Sign Language, if requested).

The deadline for the submission of abstracts will be 15 October, 2018 at 23:59 North American Mountain time. Notification of acceptance can be expected by 15 January, 2019.