Vive La France: The Baguette is Mightier than the Sword Past Review
By Rachel S (M1: SLPA; M2: French Lang&Literature, University of the Pacific) for
USAC France: Pau - French Language and European Studies
In living and learning abroad, I found myself taking part in a completely new lifestyle. Although I had previously lived independently, attended a university, worked, and enjoyed friends, doing each of these things in a different country will most certainly evoke a differnt affect. As I have found among others that were in my program, the city where one stays will emit a certain feeling that will resonate in you, touch you, and never really be able to leave you. You, although very much alone, unsure, and overwhelmed with excitement, will find that your host country, host language, and, most importantly, host friends will reach out to you and leave an imprint that cannot be erased. Although many of my french friends are different from my american ones in many ways, they do share uncanny similarities that never cease to amaze me. I find that humans are actually more similar than they are different, despite the cultural nuances that we focus so much attention on. Indeed, my newfound ability to notice subtle changes in a person has proved extremely helpful when interacting with anyone - native or foreign - in my home country, and understand just how far a little bit of kindness can go. This type of interhuman relation cannot but titulate you, and warm your heart.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The USAC students adhere to the french grading system, a wonderful way to be submerged in the french educational system. These are then translated into and American Grade that is sent to our university. The workload the we experienced was manageable, and, while challenging us, still allowed for the students to be able to have enough free time to participate in the USAC excursions and participate in everyday french culture - rather than be left to study in a dorm all day. In fact, many of the homework assignments were mixtures of book work and "field work," which required us to venture out into french society and communicate. The teaching methods used by the french professors is much more involved than what is typical of american professors. I found that many of my french professors would get involved in debate (a favorite passtime of the french)and want each student to share, rather than the sometimes passive learning that we encounter in many american style courses. This highly interactive learning and communication style is encouraged by small, intimate class sizes, organized according the language level where the student is placed at during the inception the program. These tailored classes allow for the students to feel challenged, yet not overwhelmed throughout the term. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Ryan & Robina, as we came to know them, are the exact type of human beings that one would dream of having as administrators and as companions while abroad. After having spent 3 days delayed in airports across the world, I was welcomed to France by Ryan & Robina awaiting me (after office hours)with literally open arms, a grin on each face, and kind hearts. It is a moment I doubt I will ever forget. In addition to their wonderfully gentle human spirits, these two have a knowledge of the area, culturem, and language that is invaluable to any newcomer, and allowed us to feel an enormous sense of security, which, in turn, gave us more courage to explore the boundaries of our cultural experience. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The building I lived in was quite safe, although at times lonely. As an independant personality, I chose to live alone in a dorm/apartment, where most of the inhabitants kept to themselves. I would suggest that, for a more enriching cultural and linguistic experience,the student live with a host family rather than choose to reside in a dormitory or apartment. The family environment and support that many of my american cohorts reported appears to be ideal for the type of lifestyle that a french language/culture learner will need -at any level of mastery. |
| * Food: |
Perhaps one of my favorite pastimes as a student in France and as a "gourmande" was to get acquainted with the cuisine, especially the wide varieties of cheeses, cafes,and wines. Indeed, sitting in a cafe after having finished my coq au vin, reading Baudelaire, and sipping on my cafe au lait on free afternoons, the ambiance of the french doing their shopping and going to market carries with it a certain feeling that is quite irreplaceable. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Pau is a small metropolis, with a population of about 100,000. There are festivals that take place year 'round, as well as great attractions in the Pyrenees Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean, both just a 10 euro train ride away. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
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Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
I was able to practice my language daily in class, as well as with the international students with whom the USAC students shared the classroom. At lunch every day, we would speak to each other in french, learning (and sometimes struggling) together - creating a wonderful bond between students and their respective cultures - united by the french language. Also, I cannot stress this enough, it is essential that a student who wishes to learn a language immerse themself in that language and culture as many hours per day as possible, as often as possible, and as fully as possible. To be able to understand what is occurring in one's surroundings is the first step to learning - the second step is being able to reciprocate, and produce the language. This can only happen through two (or more) people communicating with each other, which requires that the student have friends, family, or a language partner in that country. Creating liasions with the french is not only a culturally and personally enriching experience, it is quite frankly the very best way to ameliorate one's level of speaking and ability to create a bond with the language - rather than simply memorising conjugations and vocabulary. |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Often, we are identified by our surroundings, the people we spend our time with, our major, our interests, even the music we listen to and the mannerisms we use. We label ourselves and grow comfortable living under this defnition we have put forth to the world. When preparing to study abraod - get ready to leave all of that behind, and be stripped raw of how you define yourself. You will be left with only your core personality, allowing a unique opportunity to grow in a way that would otherwise never be possible. If you do it right, you probably won't be able to fit back into the comfortable little niche that you had created for yourself before leaving, although, in truth, you'll find yourself reaching for much more than the "old" constraints you had built - and attaining a life that you might only have thought possible for "somebody else." The great part of this experience is that you, in fact, become "somebody else," and that can be whoever you wish it to be. |
