Research Teams Share Knowledge, Culture and History:  Expanding English as a Foreign Language in Chile

Scottsdale, AZ (June 26, 2007) ? Scottsdale Community College hosted a special visit in April for Professors René Villalobos Letelier and Amelia Orrego Santander, English professors from the Universidad Tecnológica Metropolitana of Santiago, Chile.

Professors Villalobos and Orrego spent a full month on SCC?s campus learning about English and foreign language instruction methods, instructional technology, and Arizona history and culture. 

According to the professors, Chile?s recent economic growth has prompted the nation?s interest in improving the English skills of its students and promoting intercultural interactions through exchange programs and student-to-student videoconferences.

The professors planned to take what they learned at SCC and upgrade their English language curriculum and instruction with the goal of certifying their English program to meet national standards.

The April visit was funded by a grant through the Universidad Tecnológica Metropolitana and the Chilean Ministry of Education.

During their visit, Professors Villalobos and Orrego delighted SCC faculty with ?A Bit of Chile? ? a presentation which included the poetry of Nobel Prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda, as well as photographs of the mysterious geoglyphs of Rapa Nui--interesting and inspirational selections of history about Chile, its land and people.

International Education Director Therese Tendick, ESL Director John Liffiton, and instructor Jean Maracle, teamed up with IT facilitator Sidne Tate to create a program for the visiting educators.   The SCC team provided ESL and IT training, as well as trips to the Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community, Taliesin, and Heard museums to round out the afternoon.  It was a special treat to have the opportunity to expose the educators to the culture and vocabulary of American architecture.

SCC?s relationship with Chilean educators began in 2006 with a trip to Chile.  Pat Lokey, SCC Library Division Chair, along with Sian Proctor, South Mountain CC Geology Faculty, and Lara Collins, South Mountain CC Intercultural Communication Faculty, traveled to South America in June 2006 as part of an MCCCD International/Intercultural Education Research Fellowship.  Their project investigated the influence that natural disasters have had on the culture, myths, traditions, and communication styles of Chileans. The research team brought back very useful information that continues to benefit the colleges and their students today. 

During the June 2006 trip, the Instituto Chileno Norteamericano hosted all of the MCCCD faculty teams.  During the first week, the day began with much-needed Spanish classes, which were particularly helpful to the research team during their visit since only 2% of the Chilean population speaks English.

The U. S. Embassy, AMCHAM (American Chilean Chamber of Commerce), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Directorate of Museums-Libraries and Archives, and faculty of the Instituto Chileno Norteamericano also presented to the MCCCD team.

Cultural tours were made possible by the Instituto and included the EcoTurismo-Oasis de la Campana--an ecological reserve, Museo Precolombiano, Archivo de Literatura Oral of the National Library of Chile, Museo de Artes Visuales , Museo Arqueologico de Santiago, and the Universidad Mayor. 

A highlight for Dr. Lokey was attending a Library Seminar held at the Instituto. Over 50 librarians from the Santiago region gathered to hear presentations from different area libraries on services and current Information Literacy initiatives in Chile.

The final week of the project was dedicated to studying the Rapa Nui culture.

One direct benefit of this project was that Dr. Lokey was able to obtain several unique resources on Chile, including books on the Incan influence and the Mapuche culture.  The SCC Library collection is now much stronger in the Inter-American region and better equipped to support historical, business, and intercultural research of the area for student projects.

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About Scottsdale Community College
Scottsdale Community College offers some 1,500 academic and non-credit classes each semester. Located on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, the campus is known for its serene atmosphere and beautiful plant and wildlife. With nearly 12,000 students, Scottsdale Community College is proud to offer high-quality, affordable programs in small class settings. From Motion Picture/Television Production and Culinary Arts to Nursing and American Indian Studies, students have a wide variety of programs from which to earn credits for university transfer, launch their careers, train for new ones, or pursue a special interest. The SCC Business Institute offers customized programs to meet the needs of local business. Scottsdale Community College is one of the ten Maricopa Community Colleges.

To learn more about the International Education Programs and Foreign Language offerings at Scottsdale Community College, call us at (480) 423-6000 or visit our website at www.scottsdalecc.edu.

Media contact:
Denise Kronsteiner
(480) 423-6567
denise.kronsteiner@sccmail.maricopa.edu

International Education Programs contact:
Therese Tendick
(480) 423-6722
therese.tendick@sccmail.maricopa.edu

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