Description

This program combines classroom instruction and lab work with aspects of internship and practicum courses, including field work in an intercultural setting. Students work to produce a dynamic web documentary with faculty members serving as supervisors.

Students participating in the program will use classroom and lab experiences as a method for learning about the city's wonderful environment. Students will work in teams to find, shape, and tell stories about life and people in Cagli, turning what they discover into stories through writing, still photos, a video and a webpage. In addition to the course in Cagli, students participate in various excursions throughout Italy, including all-day trips to Assisi and to Florence concluding with an overnight tour in Rome. Students are encouraged to extend their stay in Rome or sign on to an additional tour in Italy.

The setting gives students a unique opportunity to access a foreign culture and acquire practical language skills rapidly using an immersion technique. The ability to assimilate quickly and hone in on another culture's values are indispensable tools for anyone preparing for a career in a field where globalization and multiculturalism are increasingly important. At the micro level, students will learn how to read another culture on its own terms by living in a different culture and appreciating those differences. At the macro level, students will be ready to become facilitators in the intercultural dialogue that the modern world requires.