Chairperson: Sheldon Huggins 

718 270 6247 office

718 270 4828 fax

Email: shuggins@mec.cuny.edu

Office: B-2032N

Faculty: Jesus Bottaro, Sheldon Huggins, Maria L. Ruiz 

General Information

The Department of World Languages and Cultures is dedicated to helping students discover the world through the study of language, literature, and culture. Our goal is to provide students with the means to explore their own worldviews and challenge their capacity to identify with people of differing backgrounds. We endeavor to motivate students to appreciate and understand the world's people so they may leave Medgar Evers College with the ability and the desire to communicate and empathize with others.

The Department of World Languages and Cultures emphasizes the variety and integrity of our programs, the skills and competence of our graduates, and the importance of our efforts within our College's vocational and career-oriented mission. To this end, our courses: help students discover their capacity as language learners, provide students with the appropriate language skills to enable them to communicate effectively and function in their chosen profession, would allow students to acquire and incorporate knowledge of the tools and organizational proficiency needed for language and cultural studies; inspire students to think critically in the humanistic tradition about texts and language; instill in our students the positive nature of cultural differences.

This includes mutual respect and concern for one another, openness to questions and risk-taking, and a focus on excellence and engagement in active learning. Our faculty facilitates learning and guides students toward accomplishing established educational outcomes. With a diverse and international student body and the teaching experience of our full-time and part-time faculty, our courses are especially well-suited to complement not only other disciplines in the School of Liberal Arts and Education but also those taught in the School of Business and the School of Science and Allied Health. In our role as scholars and teachers of language and literature, we constantly deal with issues of identity and diversity. Therefore, our department is particularly well adapted to the College's priorities of developing cross-cultural communication, internationalization, and entrepreneurship among our students.

Objective

In keeping with the basic philosophy of Medgar Evers College and of the Department of World Languages and Cultures, the fundamental objectives of the Department are: to develop fluency in the written and spoken language, to familiarize students with a culture, language, and literature rather than their own; to provide language students with the skills and knowledge necessary for effective communication in the foreign language; and to provide adequate training for those who plan to continue their language study and for those who plan to enter one of the many professional fields that require a mastery of a foreign language. All courses are given in the target language unless otherwise specified. The language laboratory is an essential part of all language classes.

Academic Standards

Students in the Department must pass World Languages and Cultures required Core courses with a grade of "C" or better.

One Student at a Time: Creating Success

Whether it be contact with a foreign language other than one's own, the refinement and development of one's native tongue, or the experience of another culture through literary text or sociopolitical documents, modern languages, and their cultural and literary components are essential parts of success in contemporary society. Success is measured not only in the ability to speak, read and write the language of another culture but also in the individual's intellectual development as a whole. 

The Department of World Languages and Cultures prepares students for success on several levels. First, studying foreign languages and literature is the foundation for critical thinking and communication. For non-native students, our language courses develop the essential skills necessary to communicate in the target language and gain access to another culture. For our Hispanic students who possess mainly an oral command of their language, we offer Spanish courses for heritage speakers, specially designed to improve their abilities in writing and speaking; as well French courses specially oriented towards writing and the introduction of Francophone culture and literature in West Africa and the Caribbean are also available for students who already master French at an intermediate conversation level.

Finally, by studying and learning another language and culture, students learn by comparison with their native language, its structures, and syntax. It has been proven that second-language acquisition improves the student's communication skills in their language. Our courses introduce students to the diversity of thoughts and experiences, teaching them how to gain perspective and judgment about their own culture.

Language Placement and Student Advising

Placement examinations are administered by department advisors to determine a student's level of study and assist in placing students at an appropriate language course level. The department routinely advises and places students in the appropriate level of study.

On the basis of performance on the department examination, the student may: be placed in the introductory course, be exempted from the introductory course and be allowed to take a more advanced course, be exempted from the introductory course(s), receive credit for that course, and be allowed to take a more advanced course.

Students are advised to take a placement examination if they have more than one year of study in the language and do not have an SATII or AP score in that language.

Students must demonstrate advanced native proficiency to be exempt from the language requirement in reading, speaking, listening, and writing. Native speakers are encouraged to take the exam administered by the department - known as the challenge exam -  and get credit based on their performance on such exams.

Native speakers of a language are recommended to contact a department advisor for placement or are advised to study a language other than their own.

Please note that students who have taken an AP, IB, or SATII exam can, depending on the score, receive credit and placement from the exam. Please note that the department does not accept the CLEP exam.