Legislative internships
may bring jobs, awards
About 30 University students will experience legislature first
hand as interns at the Oregon State Legislature s 1983 regular
session
As legislative interns, students will work directly with a
legislator, with a member of his or her staff, or with a legislative
committee, says Carol Johansen field coordinator for the
program
The internships, offered through the University Planning,
Public Policy and Management department, offer practical
experience in such areas as research, issue analysis, oral
presentations and writing on legislative policies, according to
Johansen
Students from any department may apply tor the program,
which will run winter and spring terms. Students are encouraged to
enroll as full-time interns for both terms, although half-time
internships are available
In the past, students have benefited greatly from their
legislative experience," says Johansen "Some have received
interesting job offers, and one received a Truman Scholarship
given to just one student in each state each year Also, the
legislative work improved some students' chances of being admit
ted to law school "
Applications are due Nov 12 and are available in Room 121
Hendricks Hall
The Legislature will accept only those interns whose applications
have been processed through the Legislative Internship Program
central administrative office, Johansen says.
Wrangling contenders get tneir kicks
Yahoo — Ride 'em, cowboy!
That's just what Gary Bruhn, of Port
Orchard, Washington did in the saddle
bronc event of the Oregon Rodeo Assoc
iation Finals held this weekend at the Lane
County Fairgrounds
ORA members do more than kick up
storms, bite the dust and collect prize
money, though. The cowboy ’s don't earn
a living at rodeo: they work full-time jobs
Film, text used to enhance language classes
By Dave Fogerson
Ot Itw fcmmald
In a world of memorizing vocabulary,
conjugating verbs and struggling with
pronunciation, a first-year foreign
language student can easily lose sight of
and interest in what is being taught.
David Curland. a University romance
languages professor, is involved in
projects that bring relief to students here
and nationwide.
One project is a foreign language film
series for first-year students produced by
the British Broadcasting Corp (BBC)
and used in conjunction with texts
written by Curland and others within the
foreign language department
The series is distributed on a national
scale and all of the textbooks originate
from the University, Curland says
"The exciting thing is that the
language department is being given the
opportunity for developing programs for
national use," he says
Using films to teach language is noth
ing new, but Curland's combination of
film and text is
"The idea of using a full text to exploit
the content of the film is really mine, and
a lot of other people contributed to the
book and the organization of the
project," he says
Students watch the BBC series in
weekly segments and study the textbook,
which coordinates daily with each film
segment
Curland wrote the first text of the
series, "Zarabanda,” seven years ago
Recently, equivalent films in German and
Russian have been purchased, and
teams of University writers are at work
producing texts for them
The department is considering a film
series in Italian and French.
The series' objective is to ‘ make
language-learning as interesting, exci
ting and effective as we can," Curland
says "We want to get more results for
the effort we put in. ”
Student interest is the key to this
success, Curland says, adding the series
is popular with both students and their
instructors
All of the films are shot on location in
the foreign countries and use native
speakers, providing insight to the
country and its culture
The study of culture is always im
portant in a foreign language class, but
often difficult,” Curland says. "To
reproduce the culture of Madrid or Poi
tiers is not easy Film is an obvious way to
do that.'
Curland and the University also are
pioneering the use of foreign feature
films for teaching second- and third-year
students
"Feature films are just as sophisticated
as life and are marvelous vehicles for
learning language and culture," Curland
says.
Like the BBC series, feature films are
viewed in weekly segments, allowing the
class time to discuss and digest what is
being presented, a process which is
"totally unique” in educational film use,
Curland says.
"I wanted to add contemporary films to
the classroom, and not only that, but a
whole new way to see them."
And like the BBC series, the use of film
is going national. Reaction from other
parts of the country is “overwhelmingly
positive,” Curland says.
Questionnaire responses from high
school students who have used “The
Green Wall” have been positive, with
comments such as "a welcome break
from contrived, textbook Spanish,” and
“we wouldn't ordinarily get to see a bit of
Peruvian culture."
The University doesn't provide the
entire funding for feature film use.
"Because of the cost, the only way to
purchase film was with a $1 film fee,”
Curland says. “I think the contribution
the film makes more than justifies that."
“Basic language classes have not had
the attention they deserve from the un
iversity or from individual departments,”
he says. “Too often they’re sloughed off
onto grad students while the faculty
focus on their primary interests."
Teaching language is "more
demanding, more difficult” than
assumed, Curland says. "One shouldn’t
underestimate what it takes to be good at
it.”
Toni^
From
g^CeiBbrUyAtJTCictioris
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NOV. 3-6, 10-13, 17-20
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For tickets and information call
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