As people age, cognitive flexibility — the ability to adapt to unfamiliar or unexpected circumstances — and related "executive" functions decline. Recent studies suggest lifelong bilingualism may reduce this decline — a boost that may stem from the experience of constantly switching between languages. However, how brain activity differs between older bilinguals and monolinguals was previously unclear.
Foreign languages are in a period of transition regarding requirements for graduation here at the University of Kentucky. French professor Sadia Zoubir-Shaw and French graduate student Amelia Stevens discuss the continuing importance of world languages in a regular curriculum, as well as the career possibilities that a second language opens up.
In 2011, the Department of Modern & Classical Languages, Literatures & Cultures gained a new faculty member: Francis Bailey, the current director of the TESL MA program. It's a new degree program that will train graduate students to teach English as a second language.
When you hear the phrase “Crime and Punishment,” you may think of the famous novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky – or, if you’re a student at the University of Kentucky, you may think about a unique course developed by Cynthia Ruder and Janet Stamatel. The course, titled “A&S 100-401: Crime and Punishment in Russia’s Realms
David Crabbe, a graduate student in the Division of Classics in the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures and Cultures has been awarded the Swift-Longacre-Scaife Fellowship for academic year 2012-13, in the amount of $6,000. The award was made in recognition both of what David had already accomplished in the Classics program and for his outstanding promise as a career Latin teacher.
Elizabeth came to the University of Kentucky in 2009 and completed her MA in Classics in May of 2011. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Florida in 2009, with majors in Classics and English.
UK professors Terence Tunberg and Milena Minkova conducted the Dickinson seminar, a Latin immersion seminar conducted entirely in Latin, which attracts scholars from across the globe.
Since 2010, the Chinese Studies program at UK has taken groups of students to Shanghai University in the summer for a 6-credit Conversational Chinese course. Liang Luo is a professor of Chinese culture and language, and has accompanied two of these groups to Shanghai.
Recent UK graduate Kenneth Taylor had been interested in Japanese since high school, so when the College of Arts & Sciences began offering a full degree program for the Japanese Language, Kenneth couldn't turn the opportunity down, nevermind that he was already studying mechanical engineering. In this podcast, Kenneth discusses why he chose Japanese Studies and Mechanical Engineering and what he is doing with his degrees.
Seven A&S students will receive the Gilman Scholarship to study abroad.
