10.3 Editorial

Author: Simon Smith

Journal Title: Discourse

ISSN: 2040-3674

ISSN-L: 1741-4164

Volume: 10

Number: 3

Return to vol. 10 no. 3 index page

Welcome to this edition of Discourse. By the time you read this the Subject Centre for Philosophical and Religious Studies will have closed, with its activities being transferred to the Higher Education Academy (http://www.heacademy.ac.uk). The Subject Centre was in existence for twelve years: from January 2000 until December 2011. During that time we have seen huge developments taking place in learning and teaching in our subject areas, something that is reflected in this special edition of our journal, which marks the proceedings of our very successful Annual Conference, Foundations for the Future, held at the University of Greenwich on 13th-14th July 2011. As you will see the papers presented at the conference were wide-ranging in nature, and reflect some of the principal areas that the Subject Centre has supported over the years including employability, e-learning, graduate support and training, progression, and 'niche' projects that apply specifically to our disciplines.

Furthermore, the great majority of the papers and workshops that were given at the conference were linked to projects that had been funded by the Subject Centre, and it was fantastic to see many of those projects come to fruition and clearly make a difference for the colleagues delivering them, and ultimately the students who will benefit from the research and development work undertaken.

What was particularly noticeable at the conference was a keen interest in issues across philosophy, theology and religious studies. This perhaps reflects the fact that the subject areas are now coming together in single departments in many institutions, often as part of much bigger schools and/ or faculty units. This has perhaps led to a shared understanding of the problems that we face as a series of smaller subject areas, and the questions of identity and isolation that can come with the immersion of PRS subjects into wider areas. This is something that is also reflected in the new structure of the HE Academy, which has 'PRS' as part of an Arts and Humanities section. As a result many activities will now take place at this level, although we are hopeful that Discourse will continue as an e-journal for the foreseeable future and is likely to be linked from the PRS discipline page (http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/disciplines/philosophical-and-religious-studies).

As well as representing the proceeds of our conference there are two other reasons why this is a very special edition of Discourse. First, it represents the move to online-only publication; and, secondly, it is the final edition that is being produced by the Subject Centre team based at the University of Leeds. As such I would like to take this opportunity to thank the staff of the Subject Centre who have all contributed to the journal's success over the years; but particular thanks are due to David Mossley who started Discourse (originally as The PRS-LTSN Journal) and got it established; to Clare Saunders who took over as Editor when David moved on; and to Julie Closs, deputy and production editor for the last 6 years, who has worked very hard to maintain and improve the standard of the journal and make it what it is today, including taking its publication online.

Finally, on behalf of all those who have worked for the Subject Centre over the past twelve years I would like to say that it has been a privilege to work with so many talented people in the areas of Theology, Religious Studies, Philosophy and HPSTM. We would like to think that we have made a difference over that time, but none of this would have been possible without those who have put in the bids, written the papers, and freely given of their time to support our work.

We would like to think that the Subject Centre will leave a legacy that will be seen in years to come (and we have been working hard to try to ensure this over the last few months of operation), and nowhere can this be seen more clearly than in the back issues of Discourse. It is not just a journal but rather the journal of the Subject Centre's work, a reflection of our progress and our journey. We hope that you will continue to use it and be inspired by its contents.

With best wishes for the future, and many thanks,

Simon Smith
Subject Centre Director
December 2011.

Return to vol. 10 no. 3 index page

Created on: December 20th 2011

Updated on: December 20th 2011