Being a student again has all sorts of peripheral benefits. It is wonderful to experience teaching and learning from multiple sides, and benefit from best practice initiatives. For example, here's an idea that is really worth sharing. Goldsmiths, where I am studying, offers an extra-curricular 'learn a language' program. It is designed to encourage language learning, and all the benefits that this offers socially, and professionally. Open to students and staff alike, participants post a language they are seeking to learn, and a language they are able to speak fluently on a moodle forum, and self-match. They then meet for 1 hour a week, and speak together for half an hour in each language.
The Goldsmiths program is in turn based on the language program at the University of West England. Both programs recognise the benefits of building College communities and social connections, simultaneously promoting harmony, understanding and inclusivity. The programs also help prepare participants for the world of work in which a global outlook and working in diverse environments are necessary norms.
Guidelines on how to run your joint sessions are provided on the Goldsmiths moodle, and the program is supported by cafe events, where participants come together in larger groups for fun language and culture-focussed activities. The moodle provides links to LibGuides and language support resources available in the library, and also provides a place for participants to contribute their favourite language learning resources.
This Sydney morning Herald article showing the numbers of languages spoken in Sydney
gives us an inkling of the untapped resources we have in our student and staff populations. For Western Sydney readers, this data from the 2016 census shows the wealth of languages in our region, and the potential of a program such as this to contribute to our rich college life.
What do you think -should we give a program like this a go?
PS: If you are interested in language learning, you might like the freerice resource.
Many thanks, Cath, for sharing and motivate me again. I met with someone at UoN some time ago to establish such a program but I haven't heard and I need to reactivate it.
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear. I really hope we can get something like this going at TAFE too.
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