BEYOND CLASSROOM INTERACTION
Monica Patricia Aldana Cifuentes
Students of languages always develop journeys in which they can interact with the tools of the language they are learning. It was the case forty years ago, and it remains till today. I first knew of this idea because students from VIII semester of the English major went to Arbelaez and Zipaquira, seeking a different environment, to practice and interact using English language while having a good time together.
When we were asked, in English Basic V, to work on a free project I chose this one to continue an old tradition. What interested me the most was the importance of natural environments for second language acquisition, far away from the restrictiveness of the classroom. To this end, last term we, students of English Basic VI, undertook a journey, which consisted of leaving the traditional walls of the classroom in order to have a more natural and relaxing learning atmosphere.
Thus, we went to a farm in El Triunfo, where we spent a couple of days. We had the opportunity to play, cook, and practice Taichi. Although, we are quite different from each other, we enjoyed the time we spent together. Besides, as teamwork demands it, we enjoyed a great amount of cooperation and interaction; these meaningful factors, which are not common in today's classrooms.
Developing this kind of activities is important as it increases our sense of belonging and commitment to the university, to the community, and to partnership. Values of which we are seldom told and which are rarely taken into account. We tend to forget we are part of a social framework that requires awareness of individuals in order to go ahead with the education we speak of. We are not only talking about learning the meaning, use, and form of a language; we need also to reflect upon the fact that we are learning another culture, in order to think and fortify our own identity. Therewith, I would like to invite other groups to develop these sorts of trips and exercises, as we have done, for everybody to take advantage of the resources (although limited) offered by the university, such as transportation support. The main purpose of it would be to put into practice not only a target language, but also the values we have been losing or perhaps to create them. Finally, I want to thank Professor Claudia Nieto and Professor Ricardo Romero for their indispensable support and advice, as well as every participant and helper in this project... THANK YOU ALL!!!
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