[EDLING:313] Language program relies on conversation

[Francis M Hult]

DesMoines Register

http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040914/NEWS02/409140360/1001/NEWS


Language program relies on conversation

Drake's two-year-old system uses technology and native speakers instead of
teachers.

By MEGAN HAWKINS
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
September 14, 2004

By the time she graduates from Drake University, junior Brittany Buchholz
hopes to be fluent in Arabic, even if her coursework won't earn her a
major or minor.

Drake's nontraditional language program, started two years ago, is in full
swing. Controversial when it began, it traded in professor-led classes and
language degrees for audio and visual computer programs and group
conversations with native speakers.

"This is a really independent way of learning language," said Buchholz,
who is studying in Jordan this semester. "It really forces you to try and
use the language.

"I'd like to become fluent. You put in so many credit hours and so much
time, I feel like I should at least get a minor out of the deal. But what
really matters, what businesses will care about, is whether I can speak
it."

About 110 students are enrolled in the program this year, said Jan Marston
, director of the program, which offers Spanish, French, German, Italian,
Arabic, Mandarin Chinese and Japanese. Swahili will be offered next
semester.

The program was created as Drake, like many other U.S. universities, faced
declining enrollment in language courses, Drake President David Maxwell
said.

"Enrollment for French and German had atrophied, and Spanish had
decreasing enrollment, which is rare," Maxwell said. "One systemic problem
in language education is that it's one size fits all."

Instead of studying grammar and literature in classes, students spend most
of their time practicing conversation in groups with students who are
native speakers, and doing independent work.

"It's a great deal of responsibility - it's up to you," said Zlatko Letica
, 22, a French student. The program is ideal for learning conversation
skills, he said, and Letica likes working with a language partner. "I can
relate to him better. You're more confident and comfortable because he's a
student, too."

"There's no fear like there might be with a professor, no barriers," added
Yarhmaan Peerbaccus , 21, Letica's partner and a native French speaker
from Mauritius.

Buchholz said some help from professors would be beneficial, especially
when starting to learn an unfamiliar language.

"One of the downsides of the program is although I have a native speaker,
I don't have anybody in the faculty who speaks Arabic," Buchholz said. "My
partner is great, awesome, but sometimes you wonder if you're learning
grammar rules and the technical stuff."

Students have class four hours a week: two hours in conversation groups,
one hour studying as a group, and one hour studying ways to learn
languages and how to use technology. Students noted that it can be
difficult under the new system to fit language study into a schedule
already busy with courses required for a major or minor.

In a language center, students record themselves speaking and talk
casually with others, as if in a book club. They take tests with
professors from other schools who visit or test students over the phone or
over a video network.

Drake eliminated the positions of eight foreign language professors. Now,
three language coordinators now oversee students' progress, said Ron
Troyer , Drake's provost. The native speakers, who are not trained
educators, offer conversation and suggestions on vocabulary and grammar.

"People have individual reasons for wanting to learn a language, and have
individual pre-knowledge of a language," Marston said. "We try to meet
them at their point of need and take them where they want to go."

Sarah Lynn , 22, an advanced French language student, opted this semester
to read French newspapers and discuss current events with her language
partner. A Spanish group is studying culture through Spanish cinema.

"You really get to pick what you want out of your language session. You're
not required to sit and learn grammar rules you already know. You say,
'What do I want to do, and what is my purpose of learning the language?' "
Lynn said.

Claire Vedrine , 21, a law student from France, said she enjoys helping
others learn and said the program would have been helpful as she learned
English.

"It's great, and I can meet people interested in French," Vedrine said.
"In France, you learn very different English than we speak here."