WELCOME TO HIGH POINT UNIVERSITY'S
MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT
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Mission
The mission of the Modern Foreign Language Department is to help students acquire the language ability and cross-cultural awareness necessary for meaningful participation in today's global society. The department strives to provide an instructional environment which encourages critical thinking and models respect for cultural differences.
- Programs offered
The Modern Foreign Language department offers majors and minors in French and Francophone Studies and Spanish, a minor in Italian Studies, several levels of Arabic, Chinese, German and Japanese, as well as a year of study in Portuguese and Russian. The department also offers the business language courses in Chinese, French and Spanish needed for completion of the major in international business. Additionally, the department offers foreign language courses to complement the major in International Relations and the Spanish courses needed for the minor in Latin American Studies. The department also offers the core of Spanish courses needed for K-12 certification.
- Experiential Learning Opportunities
Students can use their language skills in a variety of study abroad programs, through participation with the language clubs, the International Club, interaction with guest speakers from the community, with local volunteer organizations, by participation at the semi-annual International Furniture Market, by tutoring in the Academic Services Center and through teaching internships in local schools. Students taking Spanish for the Medical Professions and Spanish for Social Services and Non-Profit have opportunities to interact with professionals in the Community Clinic in High Point and in area non-profit organizations. Students of Spanish conversation attend the Hispanic Festival in the area, have interchanges with native speakers through local organizations such as Faith Action, and can volunteer to help Spanish speakers learn English through the "Reading Connections" program at the High Point Public Library.
Students of The Hispanic World Today course visit area organizations such as “the Center for New North Carolinians.” Students of Business Spanish visit an area company engaged in business with Spanish-speaking countries. Students of all languages have opportunity to interact with visitors from around the world who are hosted on campus through the Piedmont Triad Council for International Visitors. Students of Japanese participate in Japanese conversation and cultural evenings with the Japanese community in Raleigh. Students taking the course West Africa and the Caribbean have visited an exhibit of African art in Raleigh. Students taking the course Intercultural Perspectives in Business have opportunity to conduct one-on-one interviews with area business persons from other cultures.
Students also enhance their cultural knowledge through participation in the International Film Festival and the Italian Film Festival sponsored by the Modern Foreign Language Department and through special cooking events, where they prepare and enjoy authentic food from the cultures under study, through attendance at special exhibits of work by artists from other countries, and through interaction with guest speakers or performers.
- Foreign Language Study Abroad
Students have the opportunity to spend a semester in a country where their language of study is spoken. Students can also choose to study language and/or culture through a variety of summer and short-term programs with destinations such as Argentina, China, France, Guatemala, India, Italy, Spain, Sweden. For more information on study abroad programs click here.