Universidad
de La Laguna
Departamento de
Filología Inglesa y Alemana
rev. 18/03/2008
Each issue of English Studies, the booklet published by the Department, includes interviews with students and members of its academic staff. We reproduce them here.
Three-quarter moon in the clouds and
Manuel Augusto leaves the classroom building for this
conversation. The unseen traffic in the freeway is the background
for his responses. What should be our basic attitude toward
linguistics? Is it repellent? Manuel Augusto slowly walks and
carries all arguments still further.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Can we believe that that language represents the true structure of the human mind?
DR. HERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ: Well, I think that all human actions and not only language are representations of the structure of the human mind. As suggested by the anthropologist Chris Knight, we would be nearer the truth if we left aside the debate around the innate, genetic or cognitive nature of the language and initiated a more 'social' approach. He is of the opinion that we speak because in a moment of our evolution we began to establish interpersonal relations and we needed language all the way to maintain long-lasting cooperation with the others. Following this thread we can say that the chicken or egg (language-thought) controversy is old-fashioned and it has only fed closed philosophical, linguistic and psychological systems with the result of few useful conclusions and many questions unresolved.
ENGLISH STUDIES: How would you place your syllabus in a contemporary context in terms of what it has to offer the ULL students?
DR. HERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ: I apply linguistic notions to the analysis of texts of various kinds, using as a main tool the Systemic Functional Grammar brought to the arena of linguistic discussion many years ago by M.A.K. Halliday. I think that the type of discourse analysis proposed by this author is very useful for the students from a scientific, pedagogical, and practical perspective. That is, a) the system organizes the scientific analysis of texts through an eclectic approach which makes it possible for the students to gather together certain linguistic notions randomly acquired earlier on; b) its linguistic base is pedagogically very well presented and developed, viz. starting from the most general features and proceeding step by step to more specific ones; c) the approach it offers the students constitutes a safe tool for the analysis of kinds of texts that they may choose according to their preferences: geographic texts, texts from history books, from biology, from ecology, poetic and literary texts, and so on; d) it also allows them to establish similarities and differences between texts belonging to different registers, such as narrative, descriptive, argumentative, procedural, and explanatory.
ENGLISH STUDIES: And then how can students be convinced of the potential of Linguistics not only as a scientific discipline, but also as a means of personal and cultural enrichment?
DR. HERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ: I believe that the application of the linguistic tools to the analysis of texts -which are semantic and not grammatical units- involves an adaptation of the isolated Linguistics science principles used for the analysis of clauses to goals within the broader principles of semiotics, in which contexts of situation and contexts of culture play a fundamental role. Besides, Linguistics impinges upon other areas of semiotics to the extent that its methods enhance the possibilities of interpretation of the various kinds of "languages," such as the language of the image, music, painting, and so on. Furthermore, within the context of functional grammar students have the possibility of choosing from a variety of practical options, such as Stylistics, Computational Linguistics, Developmental Linguistics, and many educational applications like the study of children's writing, the language in secondary education, the analysis of classroom discourse, the teaching of foreing languages, the analysis of textbooks, etc.
ENGLISH STUDIES: What's your basic success with the students?
DR. HERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ: That is for me the "million euro" question. When I began teaching some thirty years ago, I was comfortable with the thought that what I was explaining and what the students were able to 'reproduce' on a piece of paper or in an oral exam was adequate. That is, my teaching was teacher-centred. Experience has taught me that in Faculties of Humanities and Arts what matters is the student. Nowadays with the benefit of that hindsight, I'm just trying "to create contexts of learning to enhance motivation," as I heard Bill Gates say some time ago. Then, the answer to your question is: double or nothing? Double or quits? Who knows?
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you usually provide a reasonable exposition of new materials at the beginning of the course?
DR. HERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ: At the beginning of the semester, I offer my students a general view of the contents and the methodology of the whole course. The questions they ask me at the beginning of the course, and also during the lessons together with their answers to the questionnaire at the end of the semester, give me more clues about what is really useful for them and what is not, regarding not only methodology but also contents, applications, activities, and so on.
ENGLISH STUDIES: How does your research relate to what you do in your classes?
DR. HERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ: The organization of the features of a grammar provided by the Systemic Functional Grammar (ideational, interpersonal and textual) has been widely recognized as an important tool for discourse analysis, and I am especially interested in the applicability of this model for understanding and evaluating all kinds of written texts. Now I am focusing on the analysis of literary texts, mainly novels, as types of text which represent the meaning potential of the content systems of language. The fact that I try to involve my students in this type of analysis encourages me to be up-to-date about latest developments and to find new explanations for old problems.
ENGLISH STUDIES: In which ways can we keep many of the ULL old values for the future?
DR. HERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ: I think that the best way to transmit the values of the University of La Laguna to our society (as stated in El Plan Estratégico of the ULL) is not, in any way, by disavowing all kind of changes or by customizing the service. This may derive in irresponsible attitudes or in the paradoxical situation of the "diminishing returns," an entry defined in the Collins COBUILD Dictionary (2006) as "the situation in which the increase in production, profits, or benefits resulting from something is less than the money or energy that is inverted." The creation of a common European context in the educational system requires our personal and professional "adaptation" to the new multicultural and globalized society which has arisen from quick transformations in a short time. Such an adaptation will keep and enhance the positive values of our system and will leave aside the 'old devils'. This undertaking cannot be carried out without placing in the foreground knowledge rather than information, and educational values such as motivation, participation and personal attendance rather than authority, elitism, and isolation. That is my attitude.
We all know people who very easily get along with everybody. My suspicion is that David has perfectly assembled himself with other students in class, but also showing that he is rigorous. I think he is interested in interaction, to become involved in a lively university community with which to share his plans.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Along all these years at ULL how have you become familiarized with other students? Have you built a sense of what you're all doing? Of what you're up to?
DAVID: First of all, I felt a little out of the class environment, since I spent some years working and I was not studying. However, I realised soon that I got on very well with my classmates and I could build a sense of what I am doing. I think that after some years at ULL, I am up to study not only by myself but also sharing my knowledge and my doubts with other students.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you think teachers push students to work together on curricular issues, presentations of projects, or they prefer you work for individual achievement?
DAVID: With respect to curricular issues, I think that teachers do not push students to work together, but sometimes they propose us to do presentations or some kinds of projects in pairs in order to help us to work with other people, which it is better for us to avoid an embarrased situation when we have to do an oral presentation in a class with more than twenty students. On the other hand, teachers also want we to work for individual achievement in order to obtain an individual assessment of each one of the pupils.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Again, the question of time comes up. How do you work for your classes? As part of your normal daily routine?
DAVID: I always work for my classes as part of my normal daily routine, because English studies is not a course in which you have to take notes and to study for a final exam; instead of this, you have not only to take notes, but also to prepare some projects and to participate in class, since each subject is divided into practical and theoretical materials.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Have you noticed a hunger for intellectual interaction on campus?
DAVID: I think so. When I came for the first time to the university I did not realise of that, but now I can see how the students have a special interest in having an intellectual interaction on campus. Almost all of them try to overcome themselves in order to obtain success after finishing their careers.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Have you seen a productive relationship between language, literature, and culture courses?
DAVID: Of course this has been something very productive, since from the beginning of my studies I have received a mixture of language, literature and culture topics in the majority of my subjects and I recognize that it has been a great help for the understanding of the issues related to the course. Furthermore, each student has the possibility to choose in which branch he or she performs more fluently.
ENGLISH STUDIES: In your apprenticeship period at ULL, what have been the special problems and the special opportunities of this particular historical moment?
DAVID: I consider that the special problems that I could have been in my apprenticeship period at ULL were in the first year when I had to do my first oral presentation in English, because I had never done something like this before I was at the university. However, it is something that you very quickly get used to do. On the other hand, the special opportunities I had at ULL were to learn how to look for information on the library in order to work on projects and also the possibility of working with other classmates in groups and in pairs and my improvement of the English language, both written and spoken.
Tobias has been selected for this interview since he represents a range of students and types of institutions, which celebrate the commonality of the European Edicational System. Some of the questions raised from my own observation on Tobias, and others from informal conversations.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Let's start by talking about your college in Germany. How do you work with teachers and students?
TOBIAS: Generally speaking, there is a clear distinction between students and teaching staff at my instute in Berlin. However, a great deal of cooperation and mutual respect exists. If I had to pin-point a difference in comparison with teacher-student relationships here, I'd say it is slightly more formal over there. I've found everyone here at La Laguna university to be extremely supportive and interested in me and my culture.
ENGLISH STUDIES: What's your preferred way of the teacher's proceeding in class?
TOBIAS: Hard to say - there probably is no one perfect method of teaching. It all depends on individual qualities like confidence, charisma, competence of each individual teacher. I've known some very "old-school" teachers and professors with a conservative teacher-based style of lecturing, and it was captivating, interesting, as well as entertaining. Interesting content doesn't necessarily need an unconventional way of presenting it. After all, the students are supposed to look up to teachers and learn from their knowledge and experience. Yet, a more progressive approach, i.e. more student participation, of course can be great. I think, diversity and the freedom for each professor to teach how he knows and likes best are essential.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Which are your affinities in choosing elective courses?
TOBIAS: I'm fascinated by American Modernist literature. Authors like F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway and the times they lived in, the spirit and the dilemmas of the "Lost Generation" between the two world wars I find especially interesting. My other favorite field of study are the countercultures of the 1960s, and the Beatniks (or Beat Generation) that anticipated the rebellious nature of that era. In addition, I am a huge aficionado of American cinema. Of course I tend to select my courses according to these preferences. But I'm open-minded and always looking for new topics to broaden my knowledge.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Being realistic, given all the things students have to do, how do you find time for leisure
TOBIAS: Well, being realistic, I'm still trying to figure out how I managed to do this well in my classes with all these leisure activities here in La Laguna. I'm fully enjoying my Erasmus experience and lots of activities outside of university life. Preparing and studying for class probably works because I really concentrate on one thing after another and only one at a time (I've learnt that from my mother). It doesn't seem so stressful because I like what I'm studying. Also I must say that my schedule here is less packed than usually in Germany; after all I'm here to advance my Spanish and get to know the culture too.
ENGLISH STUDIES: What are your expectations about your professional life in the future?
TOBIAS: Well, that's a tough one. When people ask me about this ("American literature? What in the world can you do with that?"), I usually give them the "I'll probably drive a taxi cab" answer. Studying North-America Studies is a lot different than getting a degree in medicine or law: There is no clear-cut path to a certain profession. My "dream job" lies in print journalism, though. Sometimes I hardly dare say this out loud, because it is such a difficult field to find a regular job in right now. Being realistic, I know that, unlike my parents' generation, I'll have to get used to the idea of changing my work place every now and then, since it has generally become harder to get long-term employment (especially in Germany). But I'm fine with that, since I like to get to get to know new places and people. I'd definitely like to do work or deal with the English language, preferably something "creative," as they say. I could also see myself remaining in academics, doing research and lecturing. But first, I want to do my Masters degree in Berlin or the United States. I guess, I'll see where to go from there. Perhaps I'll have something of an epiphany along the way.
Christian Tartler's critical responses in class reflect his love for literature, and the particular texts and authors that he likes. I think this means he has done a lot of reading, though skimming and taking bits that he needs. He works really hard on it, trusting himself enough to commit ideas to the page.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you think that study-abroad enrolment is increasing in Germany?
CHRISTIAN: Yes, I definitely think so. Especially within the European Union there is a lot of student interchange due to the possibilities the Erasmus-Programmes offer. For years now, newspapers tell us that we Germans are the World Champions of travelling. I guess we are following that path strongly as well in studying abroad. Still there can be seen some differences between the different faculties in a university. Business and Economics are perhaps the most mobile students together with the ones of philology. When you take a look at the technical faculties, which I attended one, than there are less students interested in going abroad. This of course has also something to do with the job market and the prerequisites employers impose when they hire university graduates. An engineer in a highly requested field still does not feel the same pressure to distinguish himself from others, like a Marketing major for instance does, and therefore he might stay home during his entire studies. But after all, I have gotten to know quite a lot of people at my university with exchange experiences. So, very strange but true, it becomes constantly less extraordinary, when somebody tells you that he has just spent six months in Australia.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Does your Department use technology resources in the classroom for students practice outside class?
CHRISTIAN: Well, not to the extent that you could call this "remote"-teaching or -studying. Still the faculty of computer science runs a network, which contains different types of information concerning the various subjects. A student can enter it via internet by a secure protocol and personal access data. Very often the professors' manuscripts and their updates on class materials are provided by listservers or even published on their personal homepages, when they feel self-conscious enough to do so. In general, the amount of digitally provided data has surpassed the traditional distribution in the local copy-shops.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you place special emphasis on culture over literature or literature over culture?
CHRISTIAN: The emphasis I place should be culture over literature. The reason is, I am more interested in a country itself, in this case the USA, and not primarily in a specific author or a literary movement for instance. I occupy myself with their political situation and actions, history, society and of course also their literature. The term culture in the end encompasses more topics that I would be interested in and provides a greater variety of how they are dealt with. I am very fond of classical literary forms of written texts like novels or short stories, which speak about cultural issues. But I as well like very much the movies and music. Even the news or television are important to me, in order to find out more about a certain cultural interest. So in my case, I would exclude myself from something by emphasizing only on literature.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Have you engaged in some service program in the community, interactive courses, and so on?
CHRISTIAN: Up to now, I can't say I did extensively so. Still, I spent eleven months in the compulsory civil service, the substitute for military service deniers. I was a driver for handicapped people, which was a fun job to do. You took people to go shopping, to their work place or brought kids to school. It was a good experience, as there always had been good conversations, depending on the mental status of the passengers of course. Last summer I actually worked again for the same institution as a contractor for five weeks and still enjoyed it. Although the job description might sound rather simple, at the end of the day you knew what you had done, a feeling some highly demanding jobs might not give you after all. For five months I was a voluntary athletics coach for a juniors American football team nearby as they were in demand that time. Although I studied information systems, which can turn out to be rather solitary in the end, I am still more fond of a certain degree of human concerns and common interaction. This might also be a reason why I am quite happy that I could switch to the Graduate Course of English Studies here at ULL and do something else.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Can you tell me about the research you are doing for your PhD?
CHRISTIAN: I am still a little in the get-used-to-process. Only a few months ago, I was a Graduate in Germany, now I am in Tenerife completing my first year and people start asking what my Doctorate Thesis will be about. I still don't know. At the moment I am speaking about a topic for my second year of the programme to Professor Justine Tally. If it turns out well, it will have something to do with the role of new electronic media such as the internet in the political forming of opinion within US society. From then on, let's see, there is still time to come until I have to decide.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you have any obvious influences in terms of thinking and starting to write a text like a PhD thesis?
CHRISTIAN: Referring to the before asked question, I still regard it as a fairly remote topic. Nevertheless I already had to write a diploma thesis at the end of my undergraduate studies and so am familiar with at least a few of the upcoming issues. In the case of a PhD thesis, I absolutely think that the own supervisor has a huge influence in your own work and its progress. Although I am going to be in Germany during the most time, I hope to have a good working relationship with my tutoring Professor. Depending on my personal situation I would like to go abroad and see what a new surrounding can do for your creativity. Ireland was always very appealing to me; and as there is an Erasmus-Programme for Graduate Studies meanwhile, I might seize that opportunity. At the same time I still would like to spent a larger amount of time in the USA, which costly and bureaucratically is unfortunately a rather difficult issue. Since I am still in contact with some former team mates there, with their help, I hope to get something going when the time is right.
Each issue of English Studies, the booklet published by the Department, includes interviews with students and members of its academic staff. We reproduce them here.
Adelaida, whose classes and work have always
received very positive responses, met with me at the Philology
Building to talk about her role as teacher and her long-standing
relationship with the university system in Spain. Her views
closely reflect the scholarly environment she has created around
her.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Well, do you think there's a particular type of ULL teacher?
DR. JURADO SPUCH: In general terms I think ULL teachers try to achieve their best considering the demanding environment which surrounds them -i.e. the developing areas of their different specialities and the research work which is being carried out by different teams in other universities or research centres- and strive to overcome a considerable amount of difficulties which interfere with their efforts to upgrade their professional standards and do not enhance their commitment to be at the forefront of innovative research to compete with the most highly valued research and teaching centres.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Have you seen in ULL and Erasmus students something lacking or some kind of, gap in their education?
DR. JURADO SPUCH: My experience with Erasmus students has been rather satisfactory although scant since I have not had many of them as students in the subjects I deal with. In relation to ULL students, in the case of the bulk of those I have worked with, I feel there are a number of them who lack some necessary previous training in addressing and pursuing academic issues with consistency and endeavour. It seems they have not had enough contact with the real demands of further education in their foundation. Maybe Erasmus students come from academic contexts which have nurtured in them skills fostering the required attitude to approach the kind of knowledge and research work universities are expected to undertake.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Sometimes we really don't have time to hedge our bets. As a linguist do you consider ULL students become interested in what lies below and above language, especially in this society fueled by money, volatility, and pressure?
DR. JURADO SPUCH: Some do, but others I think would need to acquire a better understanding of what underpins the different disciplines they study and to reach a deeper grasp of all the work which has been accomplished in order to develop all those distinct fields of knowledge. Nonetheless, it is quite gratifying to meet students you worked with some time ago and see they retain positive memories of the time they spent at the university and what they learnt there. Concerning the linguistics area in which I work, I think they come to realize that language is an extremely complex cognitive phenomenon which can be approached variously according to the particular aspect in which one is interested. From that point of view, I am pleased with their responses and reactions. As usual, we would need to have at our disposal far more time for our students to be able to fulfil themselves both academically and personally in a more improved form.
ENGLISH STUDIES: If I were to attempt to decodify the pattern of your research, what could I find? And how do your classes relate to your research?
DR. JURADO SPUCH: I am interested in language, among other things. Of course, this subject is vast and can be tackled from many angles. I spent many years teaching English as a foreign language and doing so I became aware of the complexity involved in the process of acquiring knowledge of a language which is not the one you learned as a child. By investigating the linguistic, pedagogical and psycholinguistic issues connected with this topic I have become engaged in generative linguistics and the issue of language acquisition. It is fascinating to connect linguistics and the processes by which our brain represents knowledge of language, i.e. builds mental grammars. To study how you can develop a linguistic explanation of this type of knowledge which supposedly we possess. Furthermore, how one branch of linguistics is trying to account for the way our mind functions as far as knowledge of language is concerned. I have been doing research in second language acquisition by investigating how Spanish speakers acquire L2 English, and research in linguistics by reflecting on the L2 areas which seem to be difficult for these speakers to acquire, thus comparing the morphosyntactic structure of the two languages and focussing on their similarities and differences. Since I teach English grammar and English linguistics it is clear that my expressed views are closely linked with my teaching.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Back to your work as a linguist, are immense concepts still existing or is everything lacking real meaning?
DR. JURADO SPUCH: No, I do think there are still solid concepts to work on in linguistics and related fields. For instance, the application of linguistic concepts to understanding how language acquisition takes place opens new perspectives to deal with those who suffer from some cognitive limitation in relation to language. Moreover, to pursue the development of linguistic theory in order to account for the way in which language acquisition processes take place, for example how the development of verb related morphemes is parallel to the development of the structure of the clause, both in L1 and L2 acquisition, offers new insights into how the mind actually displays one of its faculties, namely the linguistic one. This is meaningful. We are born with a potential which exhibits itself clearly as long as we are able to interpret it in our respective fields of research. We are now in an age where fields of knowledge which in the past were thought to be separate are viewed as closely intertwined. Those fields can no longer remain separated, since they have a mutual interdependence. This tells us knowledge is something fruitful and relevant, having an impact on everyday life.
ENGLISH STUDIES: You look spontaneous and hardworking, from where will your future strength be found?
DR. JURADO SPUCH: I hope I will keep expanding my research and study in the areas I referred to above since I know there are still new findings to discover. It is very stimulating to probe by oneself proposals and debates made within one's field of research which becomes one's own. Furthermore, I am interested in widening my knowledge of other linguistic paradigms and in acquiring further information in other areas of knowledge such as literature and politics.
Renée is not only a good student she is determined to encourage her fellow students to live in harmony with each other. This interview took place in mid-May 2006. Renée is aware that she has to continue her education and as a junior student shows makes this plain. This is her goal.
ENGLISH STUDIES: How many students are in your class and how do you see teaching at ULL?
RENÉE: I currently study the third year and we are about 30 or 40 people in class. However, in practice lessons we are divided into smaller groups, so, teachers can work more intensively with each of us while dealing with literary texts, grammar exercises, etc. My experience with people in class has been fantastic, I have found many friends here, people who are interested in the same things I am interested in, becoming good friends not only at the university, but also outside class. Concerning to teaching at ULL, I would say it is great. Since my first year I noticed how teachers tried not only to teach their subjects, but to make us love them. Obviously, I had my preferences among subjects, and that is why my optional subjects belong to the literary branch. My teachers have developed in me a critical spirit to analyse texts, they listened to students' ideas, encouraging us to express our opinions and feelings. Following this method, students do not learn information just by heart, we get to understand it. Thus, we are able to apply concepts from one subject to another. One of the most important things that I have learned from my teachers is to get involved with texts, to feel them. Furthermore, there is a close and warm relationship between teachers and students, which make us feel more confident.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Where and how do you study for your assignments in class?
RENÉE: Normally, I study at home. However, I frequently prepare my assignments in the ULL Central Library, where I get a lot of useful information in books. Before doing my assignments, I try to revise the theory that we have learned that day in class. Thus, this theoretical information will help me to achieve better results analysing texts or doing any other kind of exercise. As I have mentioned, teachers encourage students to develop a strong critical spirit, so I try to include my personal point of view, supporting it with reasonable arguments. I think that it is much more interesting for us to develop our own ideas, basing them upon the theory.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you consider yourself a good student?
RENÉE: Actually, I consider myself very fortunate to study something I love. Since I was a child I have been studying English, but once at ULL I'm really enjoying studying this degree. The expectations I had before starting to study here have been completely fulfilled, especially in the literary field. Like many students, I have never dealt with English or American literature before, but I became fascinated with it from the very first moment. So, I think that the point is not to be a good student or not, but to love, to enjoy and to feel what you are doing. And this is my case.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you think that your teachers offer ideas, act as catalysts?
RENÉE: Definitively, yes. As I have mentioned, English teachers at ULL make us develop our own critical ideas and, in order to achieve this goal, they must act as catalysts. What I have experienced is that teachers are not interested in transmitting to us just their own ideas, in a dogmatic way, but in acting as guides. I think that this is the best teaching approach. Furthermore, as we work doing seminars, students have the chance of listening to other's ideas. Teachers do not force us to learn by reading and reading thousands of pages, their method is to make us reach our own conclusions working, individually or in groups, on the material. For me, this last option is much more interesting, it is the best way of exploiting our creativity. Thus, they offer ideas, they give us a foundation and let us get involved with the subjects.
ENGLISH STUDIES: In what other things are you interested in?
RENÉE: I do not like at all the idea of wasting time, so I am continuously doing things. I do not have a particular hobby, I like reading, going to the movies, going out with friends...I am very curious, so I like travelling, getting to know different people and cultures. In fact, I will participate next year in an Erasmus exchange with Manchester Metropolitan University. I am very excited about it.
ENGLISH STUDIES: If you were to set out to take a pleasant journey through the Guajara campus, which spots would you recommend as definitive?
RENÉE: Guajara Campus is a really nice place to study... As a journey, I would recommend a walk from the Law School Building, with a stop on the lawn next to the Library. I like sitting there on sunny days, to chat with friends or just to have a break. Going on our walk, we find the Classroom Building, in which we have most of our classes. This is a very big building, but well organized, so it is not difficult to know where things are. I would recommend taking a coffee in the bar, on the lower ground floor, which is really wide and well-lit. Going out the Classroom Building, I would stop in the little square in front of the Philology building, where groups of students meet to chat a bit. Wherever you look at in Guajara campus, you see gardens, trees, palms... So, it is not difficult to find nice places here!
From my particular point of view there's no art more exciting than literature. Charlotte has the power to analyze literary texts in class and stir up some of the most invigorating debates. She has come to ULL as an Erasmus student from Freie Universität Berlin, Germany and she knows how to expand the vistas of those around her. This is the way Charlotte is.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Would you tell me your story in terms of the origins of your interest in English studies?
CHARLOTTE: I became interested in the English language early because at home we used to watch a lot of English movies as well as read English books. I also had the privilege of living five years of my life in Boston, United States. I went to high school there. Hence, my interest in American culture is very great because even though I disagree with a lot of the things that are currently happening in the US, it is also part of my identity. When I moved back to Germany at the age of 18, I felt I wanted to learn more about the country I had lived in.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Please would you briefly talk about the qualities and polarities as found at your own university?
CHARLOTTE: I study at the John-F.-Kennedy Institute for North American Studies in Berlin, which I am tremendously happy about. Each semester it offers a great selection of intellectually challenging courses. The atmosphere overall is very inspiring, as the faculty and the students are very engaged. Also, the library is enourmous, enabling us to do research on any possible topic. The Institute is divided into several departments focusing on different areas of American studies: literature, history, culture, sociology, politics, economics, linguistics, and geography. Every student majors in two of these areas. Unfortunately, like all universities in Germany, my university is very crowded, so that not everybody who wants to get a degree can do so. As a result, the universities are becoming more and more elitist, which is to be deplored.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Do you get grants from the German government or some other institution in Germany?
CHARLOTTE: In Germany I don't get any grants from the government except for the money the Erasmus programme is providing for the semester. It covers the tuition here in La Laguna as well as providing approximately 90 Euros a month for living costs.
ENGLISH STUDIES: What sort of new things have you found at ULL?
CHARLOTTE: I found that at ULL the sort of interaction between the faculty and the students is different from the way I'm used to it in Germany. In Germany, a lot more disagreement takes place, stirrung up envigorating discussions. The professor also expects the students to lead through the seminar and talk a lot. At ULL I found that the courses are more in the hands of the professor. I also found that the professors at ULL are very helpful and engaged. In Germany, the students are more on their own and have to work very independently.
ENGLISH STUDIES: What engages you out there in the everyday life?
CHARLOTTE: I like to read a lot, especially contemporary literature, by all kinds of different authors. I also like to watch movies because I find they convey a lot of knowledge and experience. It is always another person's vision that one is entering when reading a book or watching a movie. If this vision is able to draw me in and stir up an opinion or emotion, I feel that it enriches my horizon. Besides that, I am currently enjoying Tenerife's cultural life a lot, its nature and numerous festivals.
ENGLISH STUDIES: Can you talk about the kind of work you will do after finishing your degree?
CHARLOTTE: Right now, I don't know what kind of work I will be doing. The degree "Magister" is very versatile yet also a bit unspecific. I could work in any field that in some way relates to American Studies. I would be interested in working for a cultural foundation that aims to maintain international cultural relations. The term cultural diplomacy comes to my mind as something very appealing, because I think that each country's literature and other arts act as cultural repositories imperative in the interchange of ideas worldwide. More interaction through the arts could help raise mutual understanding. For this I would like to work for, and I would also like to work in different countries.
Manuel Augusto Hernández Hernández
María de la Cruz Expósito González
Panayiota Christou and Maria Hadjigeorgiou