Overview of Georgetown Languages (my apologies for those languages not reviewed, I am attempting to find reviewers for them and will update the blog as they come in):
Chinese
Persian
Turkish
Japanese
Korean
Spanish
Portuguese
Modern Greek (searching for reviewer)
Ancient Greek
Latin
French
Polish
Italian
German
Arabic
Russian
Swahili
Quechua
Portuguese
Hebrew
Spanish
Scott Garosshen:
Spanish (Advanced):
Pros- Class size (~10) means you will get practice speaking. Ratemyprofessors.com will help you navigate the sea of professors, some of whom are real gems (Hector Campos), some of whom are real gems if you let them be (Tania Gentic), and some of whom are mediocre at best. Due to the enormity of the SPAN Dpt. your experience will really be what you make of it. There are professors who are really into Lit Theory, who give only a superficial reading to a basketful of snippets (most survey classes are like this), who are really in the SFS, etc. The only commonalities I've encountered are: 1) Grading is fairly easy; 2) Syllabi are very straightforward; 3) Participation really does count. I've generally enjoyed the classes I've taken and have definitely progressed.
Cons- The SPAN Dpt. is a giant machine that succeeds in spite of itself. The course a Spanish major must chart is stupidly limited and professors are not allowed much wiggle room to teach. For this reason the non-core classes are often much more enjoyable and I've had professors in the core classes express their disappointment they can't spend more time on this or grade that more leniently. Honestly though, (as with any modern language) if you really want to learn it then spend a semester or more abroad in a Spanish-speaking country.
Russian
April Eubank:
To be honest, Russian blew my mind. The GU faculty in this department is really good (if sometimes a little crazy) and the difficulty of the language paired with the professors results in a really, really, intense first year language.
Pros: You pick it up. FAST. And since the first year is so incredibly intensive, the second year is much better and more relaxed. You'll also bond very closely with your classmates, thrown together by the impossible task that is serfdom to the Russian language. It's really an experience that I don't think you get from the other languages.
Cons: It's hard. It's fast. It takes over your life. You start understanding why Russians drink so much vodka. You lose your ability to write in English cursive, inherently switching into Russian letters. It might threaten your GPA, and it will impede on other classes unless you find you're amazing at it ('oh look, the rare and mystical Russian-learning unicorn in its natural environment!'). I say this all jokingly, but I'm actually dead serious. Sometimes the easiest way to deal with how terrible a thing is, is by laughing at it (Heinlein had it right).
Things to Consider: Russian has a lot of crazy grammar rules. For those of you who've taken Latin, it's like funny-lettered, spoken Latin with more rules about rules. If you don't want to take on the grammar, this may not be your language. The same goes for if you have other killer classes on your plate. On the other hand, it's incredibly handy (it's spoken all over Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucuses...), it helps for learning many other languages, and is in demand in intel. Career-wise, it's handy to have. It's also not too hard to speak (it lacks many of the challenging sounds found in French, Arabic, etc.). For more, see the end of my review of Farsi below. Oh, and it helps if you are actually interested in Russia. All the Russian students tend to be mildly obsessed. You'll probably get labled as a Russophile just for hanging around with your classmates.
Jon Askonas:
Pros:
Fantastic Faculty who will also get you to fall in love with all things Russian
Small Classes
Enthusiastic department with lots of support
Great funding and travel opportunities from Georgetown and the US Government
Reading Russian Literature and sounding awesome whenever you speak Russian (the language has a certain gravitas/mystique)
Relatively easy grading
Cons:
Lots of work, especially the first year
Difficult learning curve
Usually need 3 instead of 2 years to gain proficiency
First two years are always intensive
Farsi (Persian)
April Eubank:
Farsi is an amazing language. It's the dialect of Persian that is spoken in Iran, but it's also mutually intelligible with Dari and Tajik (spoken in Afghanistan and Tajikistan). In terms of usefulness to diplomatic or security careers, it's right up there. It's also a very fairly easy language, once you get around the writing.
The pros:
- The class itself is easy. Professor Mostowfi is the only one teaching it, and it's relatively chill. Quizzes are regular about every Friday, and the pace of the class feels more like a non-intensive language than an intensive one, which lets you set your own pace. If you want to challenge yourself, you can - but your grade wont suffer if you don't succeed at going above-and-beyond-above-and-beyond.
- The language is Indo-European, genderless, and regular in conjugations. Most of the letters are easily pronounceable (I think there are perhaps three which are a little difficult, but they dead easy next to other languages like Arabic). This means that you'll have a lot less to memorize, less of a focus on grammar, and you can start moving quickly through the language (as opposed to something like Russian, where you will spend the first year staring at charts to figure out how to say anything at all). It's easy enough that you can take off running, but harder than something like Spanish, so you still get access to a more exclusive language market.
- Not very many people take the class, so you'll get a lot of personal attention, but enough take it that you'll have new friends and conversation partners. Our group ranged from about ten to fifteen last year.
- A lot of professionals, teachers, and upper classmen take the course, so you'll get a more diverse group.
- Almost no one has previous experience speaking Farsi, so you're less likely to end up in a group with heritage speakers or people who've taken the language previously.
The cons:
- The alphabet is a bit tricky. Since Arabic has a lot of sounds that Farsi doesn't have (and Farsi has a few that Arabic doesn't have) there are a few overlapping letters (so you'll have something like four different letters that are written differently but all sound like 's'). The writing is also right to left.
- The department isn't fully developed, so you can't major or minor in the language. That's a bummer. You can apply the language to the CERES certificate program, however.
- There is only one professor, so you will have Mostowfi. I love her. But if it turns out you don't...that's not as good. I will caution you against checking her rate my professor reviews, however. She also teaches French, and I get the impression that her French classes are very, very different from her Farsi courses.
Final verdict: I've only taken Russian and Farsi at Georgetown, so I can only really compare those. I took Russian for three years. It was the hardest experience academically that I've had; I studied for it more than any other class. It stressed me out, took time away from my other courses, and, after three years, I still don't speak it well. My GPA also got heavily knocked around. Farsi, on the other hand, has been fun and easy. I've aced my classes, and I can speak better in Farsi after one year than I can speak Russian after three. In my experience, Farsi was a great choice for a language.
I think a lot if it though is about how you think. For me, the grammar and structure or Russian was just too much. Saying a sentence involves constructing it before you even get to start speaking. Farsi on the other hand, is incredibly flexible. The ezafe structure allows for words to be connected, letting the same grammatical structure function in a multitude of ways. The language is therefore more flowing and less grammar-crunching. You should probably consider how you need to think in a language before you start studying it intensively.
Swahili
Henri Minion:
I took Swahili at Georgetown, and it was an amazing experience. Georgetown teaches the language about twice as fast as comparable universities in the US, all without being intensive--just 3 credits per semester. The classes remain small enough that there is a lot of one-on-one attention, and for those students wishing to challenge themselves further, Georgetown offers a 6-week summer program in Tanzania, and through the University of South Florida, a semester-long program. Knowing Swahili, even at a minimal level, has been well-received in the job market as it is something unique, and many private companies are looking to expand their operations into Africa. While the language is only official in three-ish countries, all of whom also speak English, knowing a local African language is definitely a step up. In my opinion, Swahili is extremely logical and incorporates a lot of Arabic words that makes it fun to try to converse with friends taking Beginners Arabic (a nerdy thing to do, I get it, but it was fun anyway!). One of the biggest downsides to taking Swahili is that Georgetown currently only offers the equivalent of three semesters of it, and then it is up to the student to continue his or her Swahili education on his or her own time. Howard University can add a fourth semester, but that is as far as it goes. Chances for real usage of the language--even in restaurants--is minimal without traveling to East Africa, making use of the language artificial in classroom settings and among classmates from a small class. Overall, however, I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in Africa, as learning an African language is one of the best ways to show one's commitment to the continent.
Turkish
Erica Hanichak:If I had any doubts walking into Turkish class my first day, they were immediately cleared by Professor Önder’s straightforward teaching methods and astounding background in Turkish culture. Prof. Önder understands that language and culture are inextricable, so she intersperses lessons on Turkish grammar with ones on Turkish society--from music to holidays to ancient forms of puppetry. She even encourages students to get involved outside of class by inviting them to events at the Turkish Embassy and by pushing for them to apply for grants/scholarships to study in Turkey. As Georgetown’s Turkish program is one of the strongest in the country, her students have a good chance of receiving them.
In terms of the classroom environment, there are pros and cons:
PROS: She helps students say whatever is it they want to say in Turkish (as long as it’s not hurtful or crude). This led to discussions about imaginary cats and zombie apocalypses that made class interesting, as well as broadened our rather peculiar collection of vocabulary. Furthermore, she provides students with a very strong base in grammar. Finally, she varies her teaching methods to keep the class engaged: writing blogs, playing vocabulary bingo, learning dances, and going through newspapers. She’s very receptive to what students say will help them learn.
CONS: First, since there is such a strong emphasis on grammar, most of the work to learn new vocabulary falls on the student. Vocabulary isn’t well tested on exams. Second, since it is a beginning class, much of the class is taught in English. While this is crucial in order to ensure students understand the material, I feel like my listening comprehension and speaking skills are somewhat underdeveloped.
Arabic
Nicholas Miller:Arabic is great if you're looking for a challenge and if you want to become a better language learner. I find that the Arabic department has the highest expectations of its students of all the language programs. People complain about the textbook, but it does introduce a lot of very useful language-learning skills that other courses tend to overlook. The course content seems to be geared mostly towards people who are interested either in IR or literature, but many of the professors bring in outside material to help make it relevant to students with different interests (I had professor Khazaal and she was the perfect language teacher). Most of the professors are good, the TAs are especially helpful and enthusiastic, and the weekly language table meetings are extremely rewarding. Learning Arabic will also be useful if you decide to keep going with Persian, as you'll get a lot of high-level vocabulary.
Beth Cooper-Chrismon:
Pros:
* The teaching materials are pretty standardized; meaning, if you change professors from one year to another, you'll do fine :)
*All the professors are capable and helpful (and I say "all" because I have yet to talk to someone taking Arabic who has thought their professor didn't help them learn. Even my professor last year, who I absolutely loathed, I loathed because he was a jerk; I still learned an incredible amount from him.*The TAs are competent too, and are always warm and friendly and available for advice.*A VERY useful language -- not just because the Arab world is of much interest nowadays, but because Islam is the fastest-growing religion in the world and Arabic is the language of the Qur'an.*When you get the emphatic consonants down (assuming your ear is good enough to get a good accent), Arabic sounds very deep and sexy ;)*You'll get to watch Al-Jazeera!Cons:*You really have to be self-motivated; the vast majority of the work you will have to do will be outside of class. One of my professors told us outright that we would ONLY work on conversation in class, and everything else (writing, grammar) was for outside of class. So you need to be able to ask when you need help -- otherwise, unless you're a natural at it, you might not do so well.*You will probably have 3 hours of homework every night -- and it gets harder the longer you take it. (I usually didn't have that much (more like 2 hours), but that's because I'm a quick language learner and had a little background in the alphabet etc. already)* You won't learn any kind of relevant Arabic until the second year of it; you'll learn Modern Standard Arabic, which no one speaks on the street. You'll only learn dialects in second year, meaning you won't be able to say anything to anyone except for the equivalent of "Greetings be uponst you, O Ye Peasant!" until a year in. Unless you have a professor who pities you and decides to teach you a little dialect right away -- and some professors do.
*you need three years for proficiency. And if you need to learn it over the summer, you only have three options that are intensive (i.e. options that will give you a year's worth of intensive arabic over 3 months -- which is what you need to not be behind): Georgetown, Middlebury, and Alexandria Egypt. Which is a pain in the butt if you wanted more summer study abroad options that would give you enough Arabic to get ahead at Georgetown.
*The course materials are very much aimed at SFS students who want to learn Egyptian dialect. This is probably because the man who wrote the textbook is a member of the Georgetown Arabic faculty; I wouldn't rule out the possibility that he wrote the textbooks with the proficiency exam in mind. For example, we learn how to say "The United Nations" before we learn how to say "Where's the bathroom?".
Hebrew
Henri Minion:
I took Hebrew at Georgetown for one semester, and it was a mixed bag. On the plus side, the professor really tries to help students learn the language, and it isn't hard to get to a basic conversational level even after one semester of non-intensive classes. On the negative side, the professor has a reputation as an easy grader, and so there are a couple of students taking Hebrew just to fill electives but without a real interest in the language itself. I found that most of the students in the class were Jewish, but we all came from different backgrounds and therefore entered Beginners Hebrew I on a broad spectrum, from those of us who knew the alphabet and some basic vocabulary to those who only could replicate sounds they remember hearing growing up. Thus, the beginning of the class was somewhat painful as the professor tried to teach to the middle ground--not much time was spent on the alphabet, but for some, it was clear they thought *too* much time was spent on it and the first several weeks felt wasted. I decided not to take it a second semester because I had been told that much of it is repetitive of the first semester, and friends who continued through confirmed that rumor. While I enjoyed my one semester of Hebrew, I think that students who choose to study it should intend on studying it for multiple semesters, at least through the Intermediate level, in order to get the most out of the experience.
French
Nicholas Miller:
Henri Minion:
I had a great experience with the French department, as did most of my classmates. The department is well-funded, and there are a lot of great cultural events at GU and around the city. But because the French program is so large, it depends a lot on the instructor. I recommend Prof. Guieu if he is still there, as well as Prof. Spielmann.Dan Galloway
French: The French Department at GU is widely varied in quality. Some professors, such as S. Lee and JM Guieu are absolutely wonderful; however, others will have you wondering exactly why you bother even speaking the language. Cohen Scali is easily the worst professor at Georgetown. I do not even hesitate to put my name near that. She is downright mean to her students and does not care if they actually learn anythign from her course. My best advice to incoming freshmen: go into a course level lower than you place on the exam. Unless you went to high school in a francophone country, your speaking is not on a high enough level to engage or participate in post-advanced discussions and youll really just be wasting everyone's time.
Quechua
Henri Minion:
I took Quechua at Georgetown for half of a semester and then withdrew because of issues with the class. The professor, an adjunct, drives down from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, once a week to teach the class. Because it is only once a week, it is very hard to develop in the language and one missed class feels like gulfs between lessons. Our meeting times were never set--they were partially based on traffic and the professor's personal schedule--and it made it difficult to commit to the class. Further, I found the professor to be difficult to understand, and I personally did not think he successfully taught the language. The textbook, written by one of the professor's family members, is in Spanish, which isn't too big of a problem for most students, except those of us without a solid grasp of the Spanish language entering the class (or, at least not Bolivian Spanish). The language itself is difficult, with intricate pronunciations that I found hard to master. I had trouble finding a pattern in the way the language is structured, and that frustrated me a lot. I withdrew after six weeks and three classes (all of which the professor was late to) because I did not think I was learning and felt that it was a drain on my ability to focus on my other studies.
Hui Min Cao:Chinese
The Chinese department at Georgetown is amazing. If you put in the time and effort, the teachers will have you speaking like a native in no time. However, time and effort pretty means spending your every waking minute worrying about Chinese. There's no such thing as waiting a few days to study since you have a quiz or test pretty much every day. For those who are new to the language, learning the pinyin over the summer is pretty much required if you want to keep up. Most of the students who take year one have already had some kind of background in Chinese and the teachers start on materials the first day. If you do survive the transition, there will be a lot of new opportunities for you. There are study abroad programs in Taiwan and mainland China that are really great. Chinese class is no joke but it's worth it.Nicholas Miller:
Chinese is the language to learn these days, and there are tons of scholarships and other opportunities available for students of all levels. As for Chinese at GU, all of the professors are extremely kind, but some are a bit lax in terms of keeping classes interesting and coming up with meaningful tasks for students. The nice thing about Chinese is that there are a TON of language-learning resources available online and at the library, and there are many excellent summer programs both in the States and in Chinese-speaking countries.
Ancient Greek
Scott Garosshen:
Ancient Greek (Intro):
Pros- You will get Prof. Sens [interruption from April: Sens is AWESOME]; this means you will work your butt off and learn about four high school years of Greek in two semesters. He delves deep enough into the linguistic evolution that produced Greek that it's not just memorization and the textbook (Hansen & Quinn) is clear enough that you could probably learn it yourself in your free time (which is good, because you basically do and then class is consolidation and extension). Hansen & Quinn is the opposite of the Athkenaze method, so you'll be learning grammar robotically, not "organically." Sens is hilarious, but you'll be reading Homer before the end of the year. Grading is very fair.
Cons- Like any language at Georgetown, taking it seriously will cost you hours. A lot of people think that because it's 4 credits it's easier; it's not, and once you get behind you're going to be hard-pressed to recover. Also, if you haven't taken Latin you will lose out on a huge advantage in the similarity of the two languages, on which Sens will often spend class time. It's definitely doable without knowing Latin, perhaps even as a first foreign language, but you're not going to have a social life in the latter case. Lastly, you're going to have post-bacs in your class, which can be intimidating. (They don't bite, though)
Italian
Dan Galloway:
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Italian department. Donatella Melucci has somewhat negative reviews on RMP [April: that's ratemyprofessors.com, use it], but she is the BOMB. It's a lot of work, but what do you expect for a 6-credit course? Italian is an easy language to pick up if you already speak a romance language and you'll be surprised how quickly you pick it up. There are so so so may opportunities for study abroad and the dept. takes care of it's own. Definitely recommend
German
Yuchen Liu:
German is very intense. I took 3 intensive courses, essentially 3 years of regular material condensed into one year. Regular writing and speaking tasks require quite an amount of time, if one values the quality of his assignments. By the end of intermediate, students will be reading poems, newspaper articles and a novel. The up-side of Gtown's (intensive) German training is students will soon be able to discuss a range of more sophisticated topics: history, current affairs, etc rather than stuck with ordering food in a restaurant. The down-side is conversational German is paid less attention to. It is possible that after 2 semesters one is more familiar with vocabs associated with post-war Germany than with groceries. Small class size encourages discussion and one-on-one conversation. Terrific summer program. Intensive German will probably suck one's life out but overall a great experience.
Latin
Scott Garosshen:Latin (Advanced):
Pros- You will read whole works; not snippets. The Classics Dpt. is really good at focusing reading on: 1) What is the author actually trying to say? 2) Why are we reading this in Latin rather than in translation? Particularly with Prof. McNelis (highly recommend), you will learn how to read as much as you will learn how to read Latin. The emphasis is on primary rather than secondary literature, but you will also be expected to critique secondary sources and theory-related questions will come up naturally during class discussion. Even more so than with Greek, being able to read/familiar with the literature will give you a solid basis in the foundations of this whole Western Culture thing, which is surprisingly applicable to jobs ranging from legal work ('Roman Law' is offered from time to time) to politics to journalism. Oh, and the works chosen are generally just fun to read in their own right. Fantastic faculty + Challenging authors = Some of the best classes I've taken at GU.
Cons- There is no formal grammar at the advanced level; you just read the works and if someone asks something grammar/vocab-related, you discuss it. But it's up to you to go to office hours if you need help beyond that. You're also going to be in a class with Post-Bacs, which can be intimidating. The professor will often ask many more questions than give answers when it comes to interpreting what you're reading, and some students have trouble with the lack of closure- you are expected, though not necessarily required, to think about things on your own time. When it comes to papers, many students aren't used to arguing rigorously in a language class. This will cost you, though you will learn.
Japanese
Nicholas Miller:
I find that the Japanese department is the closest GU has to an ideal language department. Japanese classes are fun and challenging, and have a lot of variety in terms of activities and materials--you aren't just working through the textbook or having endless lectures or free discussions. All of the professors are super-competent and helpful. Student motivation is very high for the most part, and there's a good mix of backgrounds and interests. The language majors I met have all been highly proficient in the language, which says a lot about the strength of the program.There are many Japanese people on campus and in DC, so you can find a language partner and participate in various cultural events. However, as an intensive language, it is fairly time-consuming (more than Chinese, but less than Arabic).
Korean
Nicholas Miller:
Korean is a fascinating and unique language, and learning it is a wonderful experience because Koreans are INCREDIBLY friendly and welcoming, even more so because there aren't many students of Korean out there, especially compared to Chinese and Japanese. I visited GU when I was still in high school, and asked Prof. Marshall if I could observe her Korean class. She let me, and then we chatted in her office for a half hour, with lots of food and hugs. She remembered me when I came to GU officially--more food, more hugs. She has this relationship with virtually all of her students--ask around, and you'll hear the same. I had two language partners, and I'm still in close touch with both of them. The problem is that the state of Korean pedagogy is not good, so if you want to get good at the language, you will need to do a lot of work on your own. To be blunt, I found that classes were painfully boring at times, and largely consisted of just working through the exercises in the textbook together. So you'll want to get a language partner and come up with ways to practice Korean on your own according to your interests. On the other hand, classes are laid-back and it's easy to get an A without too much work, which could be a relief or maddening depending on your personality.
Polish
Jamie Marshall:
Pros of studying Polish at Georgetown:
For the first 2 years you get to have Professor Sadowska [April: She also teaches Russian], who is easily one of the best professors at Georgetown as well as the best language instructor I've ever had. She's extremely helpful outside of class and knows how to explain the complexities of Polish grammar.
Small classes, so you get a lot of conversation practice and the students can request to do things that aren't on the syllabus.
Relatively easy to get government funding for summer study abroad.
Relatively easy grading.
Pros of studying Polish in general:
Studying Polish is counterintuitve, which will make it a rare asset down the road.
You get to study Polish history and culture, which is surprisingly very applicable to current affairs(http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/17/world/europe/17iht -letter17.html?scp=1&sq=po land+arab+spring&st=cse
).
It's a great asset to be able to study Poland and work there in the future: it's economy avoided the recession; it's the biggest market in Central Europe - there's more US investment in Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary than in India (http://www.warsawvoice.pl/WVpage/pages/article.php/2 3422/article
); it's influence within the EU is expanding (it currently holds the EU Presidency).
Cons of studying Polish at Georgetown:
The language is only offered formally up through the intermediate level. After that you have to request a tutorial with another professor. You’ll meet once a week and go over texts (books, articles, poems) that you’ve prepared beforehand. At this point you have to take things into your own hands and invest your own time studying vocab, watching Polish movies/TV and finding someone to practice with (e.g a pen pal). It may seem like a low time commitment tutorial, but if you want to make any progress you need to invest more time outside of class than normal.
The textbook is written only in Polish, albeit with pretty graphics to explain things. Although Professor Sadowska will give you all the help you need and more, once again you need to take the initiative and make your own vocab lists.
It’s not offered intensively, even though it’s difficult enough that it should be in order to make progress quickly enough. Polish grammar and pronunciation are harder for to learn than Russian, which Georgetown does offer intensively.
Cons of studying Polish in general:
It’s extremely difficult. There are a lot of strange exceptions in Polish grammar, and some words have 3-4 consonantal sounds in a row.
Most people will think your time would be better spent on Arabic/Russian/Chinese, so you have to learn how to explain why you’re learning Polish. For help, see the pros above.
PortugueseFrank Anthony Miller:
Although Portuguese is grouped in with Catalan and Spanish in the same department, it is really well-taught. Class sizes are kept really small, and, out of the two classes I've taken so far, I've had no more than 15 students in each of my classes. For better or for worse, it's commonly assumed that, if you're going to take Portuguese at Georgetown, you've had some experience with Spanish, hence why the typical introductory class is "Portuguese for Spanish Speakers." Even if you've not had such experience, it's still a relatively easy language to learn, and proficiency is typically easy to come by after Intermediate II or Advanced I. There are only one or two courses taught intensively, but, even in the courses that aren't intensive, you still learn a lot rather quickly.
Most professors are from Brazil (Santos, Campos-Siddique, Ferreira), but there are two who are from Portugal (Vieira and Martinho-Ferreira), so you'll get exposure to both dialects, which is great for well-rounded instruction in the language. All have great senses of humour, and most are somewhat laid-back…it just comes with the culture! Most classes, except for one or two advanced-level classes, are taught by professors instead of TAs. The textbooks are typically good, and sometimes you don't even really need them.
Portuguese is one of the most-spoken languages in the world, although Brazil makes up the vast majority of its speakers. Not only are Brazilian and Portuguese cultures interesting to study, Brazil's growing economic influence.. There are quite a few Brazilians who come to Georgetown, and there's also a Brazilian Club, so there's never a shortage of opportunities to speak it on campus.
Thanks, April. Good stuff.
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