|
that they be able to monitor their own production (at least under non-stressful
conditions!). Learners whose acquisition path has largely ignored this domain
can be expected to find that they do not have the tools to improve their
command of the language without direct intervention. That is, they will be
unable to profit fully in an in-country setting outside the classroom.
By defining in detail the advanced stage within such a framework, the
profession will simultaneously be taking the next step in the process of
developing programs that allow students to move from one program to another.
In this case, that movement will be from whatever stateside institution or
institutions have launched learners on their Russian language learning career
to the host institution of their in-country study program.
In order to produce such a definition, it will be necessary to have clearly
in mind what the general characteristics are of such in-country programs. The
next step will be to come to a consensus as to how best to prepare learners to
move into an environment that requires cultural and learning-style adaptations
far beyond what most students have experienced. The more firmly we as
teachers keep these issues in mind, the more likely we will be to do effective job
of preparing our students for this monumentally challenging and rewarding
transition.
A further benefit of this endeavor can be that the profession will be better
equipped to talk with hosting institutions in Russia about what the needs and
expectations are of and for the students who come to them from American
institutions. The clearer we are about these needs and expectations as a
profession, and the more uniformly (and uniformly well, we hope) we prepare
our students for in-country study programs, the more effective the hosting
institutions can be in designing and implementing programs that target our
learners.
|
