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IN her chapter in the 1973 Central States Conference Report on gaining better student support for foreign languages, Constance Knop urges college and university foreign language departments to invite high school students to their campuses for class visits. She cites the benefits of the visits for both high school and college programs:
Such visits give students short-range goals and a sense of accomplishment. But they also increase communication, contact and, hopefully, articulation between high schools and universities. 1
An obvious drawback to this type of interaction, however, is the frequent “pot-luck” nature of the visits and the general disruption caused by large numbers of teenage auditors. When we add logistical problems, such as finding adequate classroom space for the visitors, and the possible reluctance of some colleagues to be thus “invaded,” a departmental chairman might well have second thoughts before opening his doors to the local high school population.
An alternate approach to interaction with the high schools, the Foreign Language Field Day, is now used by several colleges and universities to obtain similar benefits without the negative aspects which accompany large-scale class visitation. 2 I have successfully followed the model for the field day presented here at both Southern Illinois University and Pennsylvania State University. It is particularly appropriate for larger universities and colleges, where it can be implemented with a minimum of individual faculty effort.
The Foreign Language Field Day is scheduled on a weekday between the hours of approximately 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to allow sufficient travel time to and from the university campus. The event is a true “give and take” in that the morning program is presented by university faculty and students, and the afternoon segment is provided by the high school guests. The university contribution consists of short talks and demonstrations on language, literature, and culture. Each half hour the high school students select from ten or more different choices listed in the program. The afternoon consists of a high school foreign language talent show. High school groups present a wide variety of events, such as songs, skits, readings, ethnic dances, magic shows, and so forth.
Since most high schools require field trips to be scheduled months in advance, early publicity is important. Time also must be allowed for preparation of the talent show acts. Thus, for a field day in late April or early May, for example, invitations should go out by mid-January.
There is no absolute rule for the optimum number of participants. However, careful planning is essential to match the size of the program and facilities to the crowd. At Penn State we have found that an upper limit of about 800 is necessary. To obtain this number of registrants, we send invitations to approximately forty schools within about one hour's driving distance from campus. To permit an economical bus load, each school must be allowed to send at least forty students. With about one-half of the forty schools responding, we get approximately 800 visitors.
Failure to control the number of participants can spoil the day for both high school and university personnel. The invitation must clearly state that attendance is limited to confirmed preregistrants only.
At the time the high school invitations are mailed, university faculty and advanced foreign language students should be asked to submit proposals for twenty-minute talks on language, literature, and culture. Presentations which are creative, which invite audience participation, and which give the visitor something to take home and use should be solicited. A mix of English and target language sessions is desirable to allow the students to explore new areas. It is important not to forget to include the “exotic” languages which are not offered in most high schools.
A random sample of the type of program presented at the Penn State Foreign Language Day would include the following topics: Les Fables de La Fontaine (dramatization); Promenade à Paris (with slides); Careers in French; Vienna: Whipped Cream and Other Delights; Das deutsche Schulsystem; London Bus Tour of Campus in German; Un Cubano en España; Spanish Folk Dancing; Japanese: Third World Industrial Language; Portuguese on Five Continents and Thirty Islands; Travel and Study in the U.S.S.R.
In scheduling the university program it is necessary to know when each presenter is available and then to arrange the sessions so that each half-hour time slot offers a balanced array of choices. Popular topics may be repeated. Finally, the university presenters should know that they must adhere to the time schedule, without exception. Rooms must begin to be cleared after twenty-five minutes for the next group. A good, strict floor manager is essential.
To permit as many schools as possible to enter, presentations are limited to ten minutes each. In our experience only about half of the schools attending have participated in the talent show. Because of the limited time available, each school must announce its entry at the time of the advance registration by mail.
A university student committee is organized to solicit prizes from consulates and cultural organizations, and to judge the entries in the Foreign Language Field Day. Place prizes and certificates of participation are awarded to all contestants.
Participant Costs and Meals . Providing food for 800 additional customers can put considerable strain on even a large university cafeteria. To ensure that the university has a “guarantee” for the extra food it must order, $1.00 meal-tickets are included in the $1.50 registration fee. The additional fifty cents covers miscellaneous expenses and complimentary lunches for the teachers and university student workers.
Supervision . Each school sends one teacher or other adult with each ten students. The names of the students are listed on the registration form. All high school students wear name tags which their class has designed and produced. (Prizes are awarded for the most imaginative name tags in each language.) Finally, a cadre of undergraduate language majors is present to assist and direct where needed.
Informal Interaction . In addition to the formal program, a display area is provided, which has an information booth for each language department. Here the high school students receive information on language programs and talk with faculty and university students. This interaction continues at the lunch break around special language tables. For the high school teachers a time is set aside for meeting with university faculty to discuss mutual concerns and interests.
Miscellaneous . Several additional factors must be dealt with if the field day is to be a success. These range from the providing of space for bus parking to room reservations and the ordering of A-V equipment. Ideally, these details can be handled by the campus conference center. Otherwise, appropriate committees are needed.
The above model is one which can be adapted to almost any university or college campus. It is a mutual benefit program which costs very little in time and money. The high school students are exposed to new possibilities in language study and have a chance to test and demonstrate their target language proficiency. Teachers on both levels come together for better understanding of each other's problems and needs. The university and the language departments are given an excellent recruitment opportunity, which will not escape administrative notice if the appropriate dean or vice president is invited to welcome the assembled 800 guests to the campus. Last but not least, the various language departments are brought together in a highly rewarding service project. The field day does not replace the class visits and other exchanges advocated by Professor Knop in the article cited above, but it can certainly pave the way for such year-round contacts between the university and the surrounding secondary schools.
The author is a member of the Department of Germanic Languages at Pennsylvania State University.
1 Constance Knop, “Gaining Better Student Support for the Foreign Language Program,” in Frank M. Grittner, ed., Student Motivation and the Foreign Language Teacher (Skokie, Illinois: National Textbook Company, 1974), p. 103.
2 See, for example, Kathleen G. Boykin, “Strategies for Visibility and Recruitment for College and University Language Departments,” in Renate A. Schulz, ed., Personalizing Foreign Language Instruction: Learning Styles and Teaching Options (Skokie, Illinois: National Textbook Company, 1977), p. 146.
© 1978 by the Association of Departments of Foreign Languages. All Rights Reserved.
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