Taking a foreign language class may be appealing to many students because it gives information of not only an unfamiliar language, but of a place that is far removed from what we, as students in the United States, are acquainted with. Though the classroom setting has full potential to engage students in what they are learning about their given language, removing yourself from a classroom and actually visiting the country of the language that you learn so much about can broaden horizons in ways which may not be reached from a desk.French teacher Candice Scovel has chaperoned numerous trips to France with students from her classes. “The trips allow students to experience culture outside of the textbook,” Scovel explained. Elements of foreign culture that may seem strange in the classroom are better understood, as students who are able to see the culture in action are better able to understand that societal norms exist outside of those in the United States. Scovel explains how benefits of the trips go beyond increased understanding of a given foreign language in that the trips increase the students’ view of the world.
With only positive commentary, student opinion does not waver from the optimistic views from the staff. Senior Brian Banta travelled with teachers and students to Berlin, Germany during the summer of 2007. When being asked of what he gained out of the trip, he replied, “I got to see what I had been learning, and that allowed me to apply the knowledge that I had gained at school to the real world.”
Though visiting the country is definitely a new type of learning, it is not completely removed from the information learned at school. Participating in a foreign language trip allows students the benefits of a hands-on approach. The trips do include tours, which provide students with a more formal approach to knowledge of the country; however, the itinerary also gives students free time, whether that may be to go out to eat or shop.
Students have several opportunities to experience what these tours have to offer in that the trips are open to students of every class level. French, Spanish, and German classes offer and encourage summer foreign language trips for students with an increased interest in a foreign language who wish to expand their outlook of the world and their understanding of a language culture.
By Allie Hermann, staff writer
