Department of Foreign Languages
Mission Statement

 

            By providing students with the knowledge of languages, cultures, and literatures other than English, the Department of Foreign Languages contributes to Midwestern State University’s mission of preparing its graduates to be productive members of the global society as well as to understand and relate to people and ideas different from their own.

            As part of the Prothro-Yeager College of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Department of Foreign Languages also supports this College’s mission by enhancing students’ language and communication skills.  Furthermore, as students learn points of view different from their own culture, they are challenged to think critically and to become more aware of their own aesthetic and cultural values.  


            Together with the West Foundation College of Education, the Department of Foreign Languages is deeply committed to the training of future teachers of Spanish and French.


Foreign Language Study 


The foreign language department at MSU believes that understanding other languages and cultures is fundamental to our wholeness as citizens of the world. Foreign language study helps students approach any language, including English, with greater knowledge, sensitivity, and awareness, while it also builds bridges to other cultures and modes of thought, feeling, and experience. In the words of writer Thomas Mann: "Language is civilization itself."

The MSU Foreign Language program, using lively, challenging, and up-to-date teaching techniques, offers study in Spanish, French, and German. First-year classes meet four hours weekly with an additional hour of laboratory work, the latter including audio and/or video activities. First-year classroom work emphasizes listening skills and encourages active student participation. Second-year work continues proficiency-based skills while deepening students' knowledge of grammar, culture, and literature. MSU students seeking the Bachelor of Arts degree are required to complete two years (four semesters) of foreign language study.

Advanced foreign language study at MSU is available in Spanish, where students may complete either a major (requiring 24 advanced hours) or a minor (requiring 18 advanced hours), and in French, where a minor is available (requiring 12 advanced hours). Both Spanish and French offer elementary and secondary teacher certification (Spanish requires 24 advanced hours for secondary certification with Spanish as a first teaching field, 18 advanced hours with Spanish as a second teaching field, and 18 advanced hours for elementary; French requires 18 advanced hours for a second teaching field). Both Spanish and French teacher certification programs require that students successfully complete a departmental qualifying examination prior to student teaching.

Scholarships are available for outstanding foreign language majors and minors. Advanced level Spanish students may be eligible for membership in Sigma Delta Pi, a national honorary society. Spanish, French, and German clubs are also available for interested students. A summer exchange program with the Universidad de las Americas (UDLA) in Cholula, Mexico (state of Puebla)  allows MSU students to complete introductory through advanced courses under the supervision of MSU faculty. Semeser study abroad programs are also available in French at the Abbey in Pontlevoy, France. Summer programs for French and German also exist. See study abroad link.

Career opportunities for foreign language specialists have expanded far beyond the fields of teaching and research to include multinational business, educational administration, and govemment, the latter including, but not limited to, translation and interpreting.