This year in Italian 203 allowed me to grow tremendously as a student and speaker of the language. In my opinion, language learning should be a seamless experience in which students feel connected to the material they acquire. The curriculum this semester did exactly that. In the past two semesters, we were required to read from the Percorsi textbook to learn the concepts that would be solidified later on in class. To me, this felt unnatural. Even though we met four times a week to become somewhat fluent in the material, there was just so much thrown at us all at once that this feat seemed nearly impossible at the time. This semester, however, there was much less of this fragmented learning. There was less textbook reading and more opportunities for us to apply concepts learned in class to homework assignments. Admittedly, I felt that there were sometimes too many assignments given a night, but their purpose was to really ensure we had mastered the vocabulary and grammatical concepts provided that day.
Additionally, I feel as though I have become much more fluent Italian speaker throughout the course of this semester. At first, I was shy to even raise my hand to provide an answer to simple questions in class. Nervous, I would sit at the back of the classroom, waiting to be noticed. Though I still sat near the back at the end of the semester as well, I became much more confident in my language-speaking abilities. Because I had been so engrossed with the curriculum throughout these past four months, I was able to contribute much more to class discussions, partner work, and group work. Having taken Spanish classes for nine years in middle and high school, losing familiarity with that language took time. This semester in Italian, I was able to fully come out of my shell and take advantage of all the opportunities to understand the language and appreciate its beautiful culture.
Even though I am not fully fluent, I feel comfortable enough to start conversations with native speakers in the future. In taking Italian for three consecutive semesters, I am now eligible to study abroad in Italy. This has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. I have travelled to Italy before with my family, but I have never immersed myself fully in all that it has to offer. From its luxurious fashion, to its marvelous architecture, to its food culture, and even to its fascinating people, studying abroad in Italian will serve as both the beginning and the culmination of my study of Italian. Potentially living in Italy for three months next fall will allow me to see just how much I’ve acquired in the introductory and intermediate classes here at Duke. It will also allow me to immerse myself even further in Italian life directly where it thrives. Studying there – hopefully either in Florence or in Rome – will allow me to both understand and speak Italian better but also to foster a lifelong appreciation for everything that makes Italy so unique.
