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News and information about the National
African Language Resource Center (NALRC), University of Wisconsin-Madison
Fall 2002
NALRC Mission Statement
The National African Language Resource Center is a federally
funded, nonprofit National Foreign Language Center dedicated
to the advancement of African language teaching and learning
in the United States. The Center’s mission is to serve
the entire community of African language educators and students
in the United States by sponsoring a wide range of educational
and professional activities designed to improve the accessibility
and quality of African language instruction in the United
States. The Center encourages a variety of pedagogical
approaches to accommodate learner diversity, and advocates
the integration of language and culture learning and the acquisition
of fluency in these areas. It facilitates dialogue among
teachers, learners, and administrators from a wide variety
of cultural and institutional perspectives, and promotes the
profession of African language teaching.
The National African Language Resource Center at the University
of Wisconsin-Madison was founded in September 1999.
It is one of fourteen National Language Resource Centers (NLRCs)
funded by the U.S. Department of Education to improve the
teaching and learning of foreign languages in the United States.
If you would like more information about NALRC and its activities,
please e-mail the Center at nalrc@mhub.facstaff.wisc.edu.
For more information about all fourteen Language Resource
Centers, please visit our joint site at http://nflrc.msu.edu
In this issue, you will find information
on the following topics:
In this issue, you will find information on
the following topics:
· NALRC's New Grant from the U.S. Department of Education
· NALRC Summer 2002 Institute
· Material Development Summer Camp
· Workshops
· Publications: Recent and forthcoming African language
materials published by the NALRC
· Services of the NALRC
NALRC's New Grant
The U.S. Department of Education has
funded the continuation of the NALRC. The new grant is awarded
for the period September 1, 2002 - August 31, 2006. In this
cycle, the Center will continue its services of providing
resources for the teaching and learning of African languages.
NALRC Summer 2002 Institute
The National African Language Resource
Center (NALRC) recently held its third annual summer institute.
The two-week institute lasted from June 3 to June 14, 2002.
The NALRC hosted 16 fellows during the institute. The fellows
came from nine different Institutions across the United States,
South Africa and Ghana.
Professor Eyamba Bokamba from the University of Illinois,
Urbana-Champaign led the first week of the Institute on "African
Language Program Development, Administration & Evaluation."
In the second week, Professor Antonia Schleicher from the
University of Wisconsin-Madison started the Institute on African
Language Curriculum Development & Evaluation. The last
Institute held was on African Language Material Development
and Evaluation. Schleicher started the session with issues
dealing with the objectives of learning an African Language,
Theories of Second Language Acquisition and Material Development
as well as Evaluation of the Material. Olusola Adesope and
Anand Prithivathi later worked with the participants on how
to develop multimedia technology material to enhance the textbooks.
The guidelines from all sections of the institute will be
published and disseminated by the NALRC.
Material Development Summer Camp
(June 1, 2002 - August 31, 2002)
The NALRC recently hosted its first
Material Development Summer Camp. The Summer Camp lasted three
months (June 1 - August 31). Different African language scholars
nationally and internationally came to the University of Wisconsin,
Madison campus to participate in this camp.
The Summer Camp addressed the problem of the lack of Communicatively
Oriented Textbook Materials for the field of African Languages.
At the end of the Summer Camp, the first drafts of six Communicatively
Oriented African language textbooks (Lingala, Swahili, Setswana,
Zulu, Pulaar & Arabic) were sent to reviewers. Some of
these manuscripts are being used in language classes so that
students and instructors can evaluate the textbooks and make
valuable suggestions. The final products will be published
and disseminated by the NALRC by Spring 2003. We hope to host
another Summer Camp in 2003. Please contact the NALRC if you
are interested in developing communicatively oriented textbooks
for your African language.
Workshops
During the 2001/2002 funding cycle,
the NALRC led the following workshops for Professional Development
of African Language Instructors. Attendance at each workshop
averaged 20.
1. Development Workshop for LCTL Instructors at Rutgers University,
African Studies Program, Rutgers, New Jersey (November 2001)
2. African Language Program Development and Evaluation at
Rutgers University, African Studies Program, Rutgers, New
Jersey (March 2002)
3. Using Electronic and Video Media in Teaching African Languages
at University of Florida, Center for African Studies, Gainesville,
Florida (April 2002)
4. Curriculum Development & Evaluation Workshop for African
Language Instructors at University of California, Berkeley,
African Studies Program, Berkeley, California (September,
2002)
NALRC Publications
The NALRC is pleased to announce the
recent publication of the following materials:
· Pulaar Learners' Reference Grammar. Amadou Fofana
and Antonia Schleicher.
· African Language Program Development and Administration.
Eyamba Bokamba.
· African Language Role Play Cards.
In addition, the NALRC would like to announce
the release of this technology project:
· First Year Yoruba Online Course
Services of the NALRC
African Language Brochures:
The NALRC has produced series of brochures that provide information
on different African languages. These brochures are given,
free of charge, to any interested African language learner,
teacher, or program. Brochures have been produced for Yoruba,
Swahila, Pulaar, Wolof, Hausa, Zulu, Bamana, Igbo, and Twi.
Brochures on Arabic will be coming out soon. If you would
like to receive any of these brochures, or if you are interested
in writing the text and providing the pictures for a different
African language brochure, please contact the NALRC.
Mentor List: The NALRC has compiled
a list of African language teachers who are interested in
mentoring teachers who are new to the field, as well as those
who are starting up an African Language Program. The specifics
of the mentoring will be handled on a case-by-case basis.
If you are interested in becoming a mentor, or are looking
for a mentor, please contact the NALRC.
Language Resource List: The NALRC
has created a list of African language teachers, students,
and native speakers who are willing to provide translation
and/or interpretation services for interested parties. If
you are interested in adding your name to the Language Resource
List, or are searching for a translator, please contact the
NALRC.
Please send your comments and suggestions
to nalrc@mhub.facstaff.wisc.edu.
Antonia Schleicher,
Director
Olusola Adesope,
Assistant Director
Anand Prithivathi,
Project Assistant
Sookyung Park Cho
Administrative Assistant
Esther Fatuyi
Graduate Assistant
Michael Bromberg,
Student Assistant
National African Language Resource Center (NALRC)
University of Wisconsin-Madison
4231 Humanities Building
455 N. Park Street
Madison, WI 53706
Tel: (608) 265-7905
Fax: (608) 265-7904
Email: nalrc@mhub.facstaff.wisc.edu
Website: http://lang.nalrc.wisc.edu/nalrc
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