Department of Modern Languages
Other Languages
The Department of Foreign Languages strongly encourages majors in French, German, and Hispanic Studies and in International Literature and Culture to study a second foreign language at least through the intermediate level. While the Department does not offer majors or minors in Chinese, Japanese, Italian or Portuguese, we do offer these languages at the elementary level in the case of the latter two, and through the intermediate level for the former. Students who wish to pursue any of these languages to a higher level of proficiency are encouraged to participate in study abroad programs in China, Japan, Italy and Brazil. Washington College currently sponsors exchanges with universities in the latter three countries, and the Department is willing to help students connect with an appropriate program in China.
It should be noted that while majors are not available in these languages, with appropriate study abroad they may become the nucleus of the foreign language component of the International Literature & Culture Major.
Course Offerings
ARA 101,102 Elementary Arabic
An introduction to Arabic, this course offers an integrated approach to basic language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The class meets three days per week, and classwork is supplemented by one or two weekly laboratory sessions, at the discretion of the instructor. The course is accompanied by a continuous video narrative which is presented as the basic text and the context for each new grammatical concept as it is introduced.
ITA 101, 102 Elementary Italian I & II
Designed for beginning students and aimed at developing skills in listening comprehension, speaking, reading and writing Italian. Emphasis on communication through intensive aural/oral practice, basic composition, and awareness of cultural context. Three class sessions and a laboratory per week.
JPN 101, 102 Elementary Japanese I & II
Designed for beginning students and aimed at developing basic proficiency in aural comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing Japanese. Three class meetings per week, plus a language laboratory employing appropriate audio and video materials.
JPN 201, 202 Intermediate Japanese I & II
Development of contemporary Japanese listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills at the intermediate-low (201) and intermediate levels (202)through cultural context, including handling a variety of informal and formal situations. Continued practice in reading and writing Kanji characters. Three class sessions and one laboratory each week. Prerequisite: JPN 102 or permissionof the instructor.
POR 101, 102 Elementary Brazilian Portuguese I & II
Designed for beginning students and aimed at developing skill in listening comprehension, speaking, reading and writing Brazilian Portuguese. Emphasis on communication through intensive oral/aural practice, basic composition, and awareness of cultural context. Three class meetings and one laboratory session per week.
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