Annual Program Review CIEE Study Center at the Universide Católica do Salvador and the Universidade Federal da Bahia, Bahia, Brazil 2005

Transcription

1 Annual Program Review CIEE Study Center at the Universide Católica do Salvador and the Universidade Federal da Bahia, Bahia, Brazil 2005 CIEE Program Director: Christine Wintersteen, CIEE Resident Director: Dr. Jeferson Bacelar CIEE Academic Consortium Board Program Evaluation: CIEE Academic Consortium Board Monitor: John Sunnygard, University of Texas at Austin Each summer, program directors write a Study Center Review for each CIEE Study Center program commenting on the previous academic year. The program director writes the review based on input from the CIEE Academic Consortium Board members, resident directors, sending institutions, and student evaluations. Each report is made public on the CIEE website at Program Goals The CIEE Study Center in Bahia, Brazil is designed for students who have at least two years of college-level Spanish or one year of Portuguese or the equivalent and want to improve their Portuguese language skills and knowledge of contemporary Brazil, especially the Northeast region with its distinctive cultural patterns. The program has three main goals: to increase students oral and written Portuguese language skills; to facilitate students knowledge of contemporary Brazil and the northeastern region; and to provide students with the opportunity to take regular Brazilian university courses, especially in the fields of Afro-Brazilian issues and cultural studies. This study abroad program is particularly unique due to its five-week pre-session focusing on intensive Portuguese language acquisition and culture consisting of two courses: Portuguese language and Contemporary Brazil. This Intensive Language and Culture program (ILCP) provides an important linguistic foundation to participants so that they can direct enroll in regular university courses during the regular semester. Additionally, the interdisciplinary Contemporary Brazil course presents various themes regarding Brazilian society provides students a context to better understand and analyze the culture around them. Another unique feature of this program is the three CIEE courses that are offered in addition to the course offerings at the host institution, Universidade Católica de Salvador. The required core course, Culture and Society: Bahia and Brazil, as well as the two elective courses, Race and Class in a Multicultural Society: Bahia and Brazil and Brazilian Cultural and Artistic Manifestations offer students specially-designed courses focusing on the northwest region and its distinctive culture. Overall, the program goals are being met well and are still appropriate for the site. The monitoring process in 2004 recommended that attention be paid to improving interactions between staff and students as well as improving aspects of the academic program, particularly the CIEE courses. Academic Program During the fall semester, the Intensive Language and Culture Program (ILCP) is held in Bahia for participants of both the CIEE São Paulo and Bahia programs. During the spring semester, the ILCP is held in São Paulo for both groups of semester students. In both sites, the curriculum remains the same consisting of a Portuguese language course (60 contact hours) and a Contemporary Brazil course (45 hours). 1

2 Portuguese Language Following the ILCP, participants on the Bahia program begin the regular semester, during which they are required to continue Portuguese language study. Portuguese language courses are taught on the Universidade Federale da Bahia (UFBA) through the Institute of Language and Literature. Students were enrolled in the following language courses: Fall 2004 Spring 2005 Beginner II 5 students 10 students Intermediate I 6 students 8 students Intermediate II 6 students 10 students Advanced I 5 students 3 students Advanced II - 2 students TOTAL 22 students 33 students The Portuguese language program improved over the past year and students remarked that they felt that the courses were generally strong. In addition, all students indicated that their skills had improved greatly over the course of the semester or year. The CIEE Resident Director, Dr. Jeferson Bacelar, works closely with the Institute of Language and Literature at UFBA to monitor the quality of the language courses throughout the year. Culture and Society: Bahia and Brazil In addition to Portuguese language, all students must enroll in the CIEE core course, Culture and Society: Bahia and Brazil. This course is an examination of important historical events, with a focus on politics, poverty and violence as well as cultural aspects of Brazilian society such as: race, religion, sports, music, festivals and the recent emergence of television and media. In addition to reading and discussion, videos are shown in class and an ample bibliography is provided to each student. The course received mixed reviews. The Resident Director, who is professor of this course, will be making a shift in the academic focus emphasizing contemporary aspects of Brazilian society rather than historical aspects in the coming academic year. Elective Coursework In addition to the two required courses, students may elect two to three courses among the two CIEE electives and a range of direct enrollment options at the Universidade Católica de Salvador (UcSal). Race and Class in a Multicultural Society: Bahia and Brazil Seven students registered for this CIEE elective course during the fall and five students during the spring semester. The course offers a theoretical approach to race, class, and gender from two angles: 1) problems in the writing of history in regard to these perspectives and; 2) how the factors of race, class and gender intersect in the scope of employment, education, interpersonal relations and media. Course evaluations did improve greatly from the previous year; however, the resident director believes additional changes can be made to strengthen this important course. Brazilian Artistic and Cultural Manifestations Despite being taught by an engaging professor, no one registered for this CIEE elective course during the fall semester. However, during the spring semester, 12 students registered for the course. The course explore diverse forms of artistic creation and expression in Brazilian and Bahia society including architecture, music, cinema, northeastern poetry, dance, festivals, fashion and cooking. A basic characteristic of the course was combination of theoretical lessons using audio- 2

3 visual resources, guest speakers and participation in practical activities. This was the best evaluated CIEE course during Universidade Católica de Salvador (UCSAL) CIEE participants have weeks as their add/drop during the course selection process at UcSal. Although the course registration process was smoother than in previous years, students still remarked that the process is often bureaucratic and confusing. This is partly due to the different academic culture that Brazilian universities present but resident staff will work on facilitating the process in future semesters. Students registered in the following departments: Department Fall 2004 Spring 2005 Music 12 students 11 students Fine Arts 11 students 5 students Geography 6 students 9 students Social Communication 6 students 3 students Physical Education 5 students - Philosophy 4 students 8 students Education 3 students 2 students Social Service 1 students 11 students Biology 1 student - Math 1 student - Business Administration - 1 student Economy - 2 students The academic quality of the courses is evaluated as mixed by the students, depending on which courses in which they were registered. CIEE resident staff keeps all course evaluations in the CIEE office to use in future academic advising in order to steer students toward better courses. Non-academic Features Orientation The first half of the orientation discussed adaptation issues and expectations about Bahia life, including a focus on housing and safety. During the second half of the orientation, students were divided into small groups to discuss Bahia academic culture, the structure of UcSal, and students did their preliminary course registration. During these latter sessions, there were 10 UcSal students who provided their perspective about Brazilian academic life and also accompanied the CIEE students on campus tours of the different faculties. Cultural activities CIEE organized the following activities for all participants during the Fall 2004 semester: A day trip to Cachoeira city and participation in the party organized by Irmandade da Boa Morte, a traditional Afro-Brazilian organization exclusively formed by women. A Brazilian soccer championship match in the Barradão Stadium. A religious Candomblé ceremony in the Axé Opô Afonjá, one of the most important temples of the Afro-Brazilian religion. A boat trip around the Baía de Todos os Santos, visiting the Islands of Frades and Itaparica. 3

4 CIEE organized the following activities for all participants during the spring 2005 semester: A visit to the Baixa part of the city of Salvador; A trip to the Castle of Garcia D Ávila and Projeto Tamar in Praia do Forte, a sea turtle rescue organization; Attendance at a Roda de Choro (a Brazilian type of music) Attendance at a Bahian play, Lampiaco ; Attendance at a religious ceremony of Candomblé; Attendance at a Brazilian movie, O casamento de Romeu e Julieta The organized cultural activities often complemented the CIEE courses, primarily the core course. The variety of events provides students with the opportunity to observe and participate in specific cultural events. Field Trip During the spring 2005 semester a new three-day excursion was organized to the interior of the state of Bahia. This trip to Ribeira do Pombal provided an opportunity for the students to know the reality of the interior of the state, where an indigenous presence still remains and a new ecological area of Brazil. Community Service CIEE has an agreement with the Centro de Voluntários da Bahia (CVB), an organization that centralizes the main institutions responsible for volunteering in Bahia. Many students had requested and visited CVB during both semesters. Three students volunteered in the fall semester and one student during the spring semester. These volunteer experiences included: Teaching English classes at the Galeria Centro para Arte e Cultura, in São Tomé de Paripe Participating in Recreation activities and teaching Spanish and English Classes at the Núcleo de Apoio ao Cancêr Infantil. Participating in Recreation activities and teaching English classes at Creche Ação Repartir, in Federação. Teaching English Classes at A Mulherada, in Pelourinho. Housing Beginning fall 2004, the only housing option was a living with a host family. In past years, students had had the option to switch into independent housing after the ILCP. During the fall semester, two students were relocated to different families and during the spring semester, four students were relocated. Students Enrollment Gender Semester 45 Male 25 Academic Year 12 Female 32 Average Student GPA

5 Top Enrollments by Major International Affairs International Relations Latin American Study International Studies Political Science Top Sending Schools George Washington University University of Southern California-CLAS Macalester College Georgetown University Wellesley College Future Directions Overall, the program is doing well. During the past year, there have been significant improvements in the orientation, the relationship between staff and students and the improvement of the CIEE course, and the cultural activities, including the three-day field trip to the interior of Bahia. The overarching goals of this program are to improve the academic quality of the courses, particularly the CIEE courses, during the academic year. 5