I. CURRICULUM AND MISSION
The Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures (hereafter referred to as the Department) has one of the premier undergraduate and graduate programs in the field in the United States. The Department offers a variety of courses, which fall into three main categories: language courses (Russian, Polish, Serbian/Croatian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Czech), literature courses (chiefly Russian and Polish literature), and linguistics courses (historical and synchronic). In addition, the Department teaches a number of courses with a strong cross-disciplinary element on subjects such as Russian and East European film, Russian society and literature, gender structures in Russian literature, and Russian and East European science fiction.
All the language courses are taught at the undergraduate level, with the Russian language program consisting of a four-year sequence of courses. The non-Russian Slavic language courses are offered in two-year sequences, although students may continue to study these languages beyond their second year under generic course rubrics with individual language instructors, when these are available.
The Department's literature courses include both those that are meant exclusively for undergraduates and those that are designed for senior undergraduates and/or graduate students.
The Department's linguistic courses include both those that are meant exclusively for undergraduates and those that are designed for senior undergraduates and/or graduate students.
The Department's curriculum reflects its mission, which is a four-fold one:
• First, we aim to offer our undergraduate students courses that will sensitize them to and familiarize them with the worlds of Slavic languages and cultures. In doing this we help them fulfill their General Education requirements.
• Second, we aim to offer our undergraduate and graduate students language, literature, and culture courses which will help them function better in the "global village" that our world is becoming- particularly in fields outside of academia, such as commerce, industry and NGOs. This is the applied component of our mission.
• Third, we offer undergraduate students who come from Slavic backgrounds and have an interest in the languages, literatures and cultures of their ancestors appropriate courses in these subjects. This is the heritage component of our mission.
• Fourth, we train undergraduates and graduate students to become experts in Slavic languages, literatures, and cultures. This has been the traditional mission of the Department and it is one that we shall continue to pursue, albeit with reference to the new cultural and social contexts within which the Department must operate in the twenty-first century.
II. PROCESS USED IN DEVELOPING THE PLAN
In May 1998 outgoing Head Olga Soffer asked Professor Richard Tempest, at that time graduate adviser, and Dr. Jonathan Ludwig, Language Program Coordinator, to oversee the development and writing of this document. They have worked together, and with the current Acting Head Maurice Friedberg, to provide this assessment program.
III. DESIRED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Language Courses
The Department's undergraduate language courses are meant to provide students with a command of the languages taught
1. For students taking the Russian 101-102 sequence:
• read and write Russian letters and words and sentences
• give and respond with simple greetings
• introduce yourself and make introductions to others
• discuss activities in which you regularly participate
• discuss professions and academic topics, including subjects and languages studied
• ask for and give simple directions
• describe your living accommodations and hometown
• purchase needed materials
• describe personal appearances and possessions
• express likes and dislikes
• use numbers from 1-99
• use the past and future tenses
• use time expressions
• express motion
• use days of the week and months of the year
• go shopping
• agree and disagree
• make comparisons
2. For students taking the Russian 103-104 sequence:
• discuss holiday plans, including making toasts
• more exact time expressions
• tell the temperature and discuss the weather
• survive a trip to the doctor's
• Russian food and traditions
• the arts in Russia
• Russian proverbs
• read several short stories and poems watch and understand two detective movies be able to write short essays about yourself be able to write brief creative works be able to guess and hypothesize in writing and in speech
Students completing the Russian 101-104 sequence are expected to test at the ACTFL Intermediate level.
3. For students taking Russian Language courses at the 200 level:
The Department offers two language tracks at the 200 level: Russian 213-214, a course series in advanced grammar, composition, and conversation and Russian 215-216, a course series in Russian literature, culture, politics, and history. Both of these series are taught in Russian and use authentic Russian materials. At the end of both series, students will have an increased knowledge of Russian grammar, the ability to read advanced authentic Russian texts, the ability to converse on more complicated topics (with the added ACTFL advanced level abilities to describe, narrate, and compare), and to write essays demonstrating these same advanced-level abilities.
Students completing the Russian 200-level courses are expected to test at the ACTFL IntermediateHigh level, although some students who have spent time in Russia will test at the Advanced level.
4. For students taking Russian 313-314:
Students are expected to increase their knowledge of and ability to work with authentic Russian audio and written texts on the ACTFL advanced level from that gained in the 200-level courses.
Students completing Russian 313-314 are expected to test at the ACTFL Advanced level.
5. For students taking Russian 105:
Russian 105 is a service course geared toward students in the applied areas of business, agriculture, and engineering. Although it covers similar topics to those taught in Russian 10 1 - 103, its emphasis is on linguistic survival skills, both spoken and written. At the end of this onesemester course, students will be able to read and make themselves understood on a very basic level (ACTFL Novice-High although some students will approach ACTFL Intermediate-Low level).
6. For students taking the Polish 101-104, the Serbian/Croatian 101-104, and the Ukrainian 10 1-104 sequences
The goals for each level are similar to those for Russian 101-104 cited above; the only differences appear in the order in which topics are presented.
7. For students taking Bulgarian 381-382, the goal is to provide each a strong reading knowledge of the language suitable for conducting research.
Linguistics Courses
Undergraduate students taking those of our linguistics courses that are designed for both undergraduate and graduate students, such as Slav 380 (Introduction to Slavic Linguistics), are expected to add to their level of language competence in the language they are studying.
Graduate students taking our linguistics courses, in addition to the undergraduate goals stated above, are expected to have the ability to teach and conduct research in these areas.
Literature Courses
The Russian Literature courses at the 100-300 level are meant to provide undergraduate students with:
• a knowledge of the works in the canon of Russian literature;
• an understanding of the special role that Russian writers and poets have historically played in Russian society and history;
• a command of analytical techniques and approaches relevant for the study of Russian prose and poetry
In addition to the goals cited above for undergraduate students, graduate students taking our literature courses are expected to have the ability to teach and conduct research in these areas.
IV. MEASUREMENT INSTRUMENTS/TECHNIQUES
The assessment of the performance of undergraduate students in the courses they take is assessed according to the following criterion: knowledge of material; performance on in-class tests and quizzes; performance on mid-term and final examinations; term papers (these are usually assigned in third- and fourth-year undergraduate courses, as well as in graduate courses and seminars).
In addition, Russian language students are proficiency tested using the Simulated Oral Proficiency Interview program developed by the Center for Applied Linguistics. Students of the other languages will be assessed using this method as further tests are developed nationwide.
The assessment of the performance of graduate students in the courses they take is carried out according to the above criteria. In addition:
Students working towards the degree of M. A., in addition to eight hours of coursework as described in the Department's Handbook, must pass a written and oral examination on the material they have studied.
Students working towards the degree of Ph.D., in addition to sixteen hours of coursework as described in the Department's Handbook, must complete a dissertation and defend it before an examination committee.
V. PROCESS FOR USING THE RESULTS
The results of the assessment of each student are made available to the undergraduate adviser, the graduate adviser, and/or the Language Program Coordinator, as appropriate, and to the faculty as a whole, as deemed necessary by the Head for funding considerations. Each appropriate to his/her area of expertise meets with each student on a one-on-one basis to discuss strengths and weaknesses, to develop a continued program of study, to prepare for career opportunities, and to find appropriate job opportunities upon graduation.
VI. TIMETABLE FOR IMPLEMENTATION
All of the above assessment proposals are currently being carried out, with the exception of proficiency testing for languages. Russian proficiency testing will begin in the Spring '99 semester; other languages will be proficiency tested as nationwide tests become available.
VII. SUPPORT NEEDS
The support needed by the Department consists of funding to purchase materials for proficiency testing and/or hiring outside testers for the non-Russian Slavic languages.