JSA 2015 - Twenty-First Annual Japan Studies Association Conference

Established in San Diego in the spring of 1994, the JSA has assisted its members ? primarily teachers from American two- and four-year colleges and universities ? to acquire first-hand knowledge about Japan and infuse it into the curriculum of their home institutions. Through workshops and study-tours, and the professional networking they enable, JSA’s members have been inspired to engage in curriculum development, design study-abroad programs, and initiate Japan-related or comparative research, an outlet for which they have found both in the organization’s Japan Studies Association Journal and its annual national conference.
In January 2015 we return to San Diego to share our continuous and new pedagogical and research interests in Japan’s literary and cultural traditions, historical and economic developments, sociopolitical and religious past and present. We invite proposals for individual presentations, discipline-specific or interdisciplinary panels, roundtables on pedagogy and teaching innovation and staged readings.
The following themes can serve as useful points of departure:
Commemorating Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 1945-2015: historical perspectives, enduring challenges, possibilities for the future;
The image of Kyoto ? traditional and modern;
Pre-modern, modern or contemporary Japanese literature and culture, music, theater, film;
Japanese aesthetics and material culture;
Historical, social, economic or political perspectives on Japan’s relationships with its national self, minorities and neighbors;
Japan’s religious traditions, sacred texts and architecture;
Youth and popular culture in Japan; manga and anime;
Post-3.11 Japan ? healing and persistent challenges;
Pedagogy, field trips and study tours: teaching Japanese language and culture ? reflections and strategies, hurdles and achievements;
Infusing Japanese Studies into the undergraduate curriculum ? successful course and program development, faculty collaboration and ways to engage with institutional core goals;
New voices in Japanese Studies: graduate student research.
We encourage both east-west and inter-Asian comparative perspectives and would particularly welcome contributions by alumni of JSA’s Freeman Foundation intensive workshops on Japan (2002?2014), by participants in the Wichita and Belmont workshops, both funded by a generous grant from the Japan Foundation, and by participants in the 2014 Kyoto workshop. Please contact colleagues with whom you share pedagogical and research interests and form a panel or a roundtable; this results in more engaging presentations and follow-up discussion.
Graduate Students
Annually, JSA offers up to three graduate student scholarships, $500 each. To be eligible, students must be enrolled full time in a graduate program in any content area related to Japan and must have a paper accepted for the 2015 conference. Please submit a complete copy of your paper with your proposal form, making sure that “Graduate Student” appears clearly both on the first page of your paper and on the proposal form. The successful applicants will be notified in October when acceptance letters are sent out to all conference participants.
The Venue: The Embassy Suites
The Embassy Suites San Diego Bay ? Downtown is located at 601 Pacific Hwy, San Diego, CA 92101, USA. It is in the immediate proximity of the restaurants and shops of Seaport Village, and only a few blocks away from the historic Gaslamp Quarter. To visit its website, please go to: http://embassysuites3.hilton.com/en/hotels/califor...
JSA has negotiated a block of rooms at a special rate for the conference participants. For single or double occupancy, the room rate is $149 (plus tax). This includes free internet, full breakfast and complimentary drinks during the evening happy hour. To make a reservation, please call 1-800-EMBASSY and identify yourself as attending the Japan Studies Association conference. To take advantage of the special room rate, reservations must be made by 08 December 2014.