A Case for Student Travel
2009; Volume: 75; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
0011-8044
Autores Tópico(s)Second Language Learning and Teaching
Resumoopportunity for enhancing the teaching of foreign language can be immeasurably increased if the possibility exists to travel with students to the country of the language. This article captures some of the learnings that students express after experiencing what they had only imagined through classwork during the year. Examples of their comments are interwoven with the learning that has been intentionally designed by the teacher / conductor of the travel experience. Even if educational credit is not being earned, students can be guided to make the most of their travel experience by making observations and journaling about them. One of the greatest pleasures and adventures I had while teaching was having the opportunity to travel with students. Since I was a French teacher, the destination, of course, was France. Some might wonder if I ever became bored with seeing the same landmarks over and over again. Not at all. Oui, I have seen the Eiffel Tower at least a hundred times, and I feel compelled to take a picture of it each time I go! However, I derived great joy from watching my students' reactions to seeing the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, or the Pont du Gard for the first time. is a certain ye ne sais quoi about traveling that brings history, art, language, and other classroom lessons alive for students. Learning about Louis XVI in class is one thing; walking the halls of Versailles and thinking how he roamed these same halls 250 years prior is a completely different experience. While traveling does not afford the depth of knowledge of a country as does living there, such as in a study-abroad program, it certainly provides an opportunity for the traveler to make observations about everyday life, to learn about cultural differences, and to forge connections to learning done in the classroom. During each trip, I encouraged my students to keep ajournai, not only about what we visited and did, but also of observations that they had made during the trip. Moslih Eddin Saadi wrote, A traveler without observation is a bird without wings. While traveling can be a joy by itself, I wanted to help my students to grow their wings during the trips. In many senses the trips were vacations, but I wanted to make sure that some learning took place, and I knew that would happen if there was a conscious effort to make, and think about, those observations. I asked some of my former students to share their observations with me. Observations about Everyday Life Making observations about everyday life while traveling is more challenging than trying to do so while spending a prolonged period of time in the country. Travelers, especially on organized tours, tend to stick together, speak their common language, and do not get involved in the day-to-day happenings of the place where they are visiting. students' observations about everyday life were quite interesting. From the comments that the students shared with me, ice, restrooms, and showers were evidently important issues. One girl wrote, There is no such thing as a free bathroom. Bring lots of change.... Another commented, They pretty much never served us ice in our drinks, unless you asked for it. And the showers rarely had shower curtains. . . so it was impossible to shower without making a lake. And we had to squat in some of the restrooms. Still, another remarked, The bathrooms were different, and I was not used to having the toilet in a separate room. While I have noticed these peculiarities as well, I have grown accustomed to them when I am in France. What I enjoy about these observations from my students is that it reminds me that the differences, while unimportant to me, are very important when traveling with students or novice travelers. Cultural Differences study of culture is such an integral part of the foreign language classroom. Hardly a day goes by that some cultural aspect is not addressed and discussed. …
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