January 23, 2007 - 4:00pm
Samantha Keller is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student at Malaspina University-College taking a minor in history and now, thanks to the new Minor in Languages and Culture (Romance Languages), also in language.
“I think language is so important in Canada and really beneficial to getting a job,” said Keller, who eagerly anticipated the approval of the new minor. “I really enjoy learning French and being able to teach it.”
The new Minor in Languages and Culture (Romance Languages) was approved by the Ministry of Advanced Education in November 2006 and will allow Malaspina students to specialize in either French or Spanish.
“It is important in today’s workplace to have a second language and not just in speaking, but in writing and cultural understanding,” said Dr. Hope Leith, French professor and chair of Malaspina’s Modern Languages Department. “Research shows there is a strong demand for people who are multilingual in a number of fields. We see students without a language minor, but who can speak another language, working because there is such a demand.”
Kaelan Palmer, a second-year Global Studies student, said studying French will give him an advantage when he hits the job market.
“To get a government job you need to speak both official languages,” he said. “I want to get into law, so it will help to speak French and English.”
Leith said the existing language classes appeal to students from all disciplines including business, recreation and tourism, history, global studies, creative writing and education. Some of the third and fourth year classes necessary to complete the minor started this January.
Although the minor has been in the works for more than three years, Malaspina students have already had the opportunity to take upper-level language courses through directed studies. Because they’ll have the credits, Leith hopes to see the first minor grads to graduate this June.
Malaspina University-College has offered French classes since the school began university-transfer courses in the late 1960s. Spanish, Chinese and Japanese courses began in 1994. More than 300 students a year take language courses and Leith projects the new minor will make the department even more popular.
The departmental growth since 1994 has been steady, said Leith, and reflects student demand. Since starting the minor application process in 2003, Malaspina has developed 17 new language courses.
“In the future, we hope to expand the minor option to include other languages, like Japanese and Chinese,” said Leith.
For more information go to the website at http://www.viu.ca/calendar/UniversityDegreeCompletion/bamajorsminors/languagesandculture.asp.
Tags: In the Community
