East meets west: ACES NSLI-Y Students learn Turkish
The 20 students who studied abroad in Istanbul this summer improved their language skills with leaps and bounds! Over the six week course, students hit major milestones, including: a strong command of the present continuous tense; use of simple possessive structures; basic understanding of case endings; wide vocabulary of everyday words and expressions; ability to follow general flow of conversations and adherence to rules of vowel harmony. The Turkish ACES NSLI-Y Resident director writes,”In class, it is easy to see how much Turkish they are learning each day. There are a lot of "aha" moments when the students discover the meaning to a word they have been hearing a lot outside of class. They are also absorbing new material more quickly. This week they have moved on to verbs. They answer questions in class with more ease and confidence.”
Students volunteered around the city throughout their six week program. The volunteer activities were a good opportunity for the students to see different elements of Turkish society, including schools, park services, an animal shelter, and sanitation work.
Students lived with host families full time during their stay in Turkey. Families and students bonded and it was not uncommon to hear them say that the student is like their own child. Families were impressed by how fast the students learned Turkish and almost universally reported feeling like the student is just another family member.
Turkish cultural opportunities were presented to the students over the course of the program. Students visited major historical sites as well as lesser-known local attractions.
Students were also fortunate enough to meet with the Consul General of the United States, Mr. Scott Kilner at the US Embassy in Istanbul. They received a thorough briefing on safety and culture, and had a question-and-answer session with embassy staff.
ACES administers summer programs to Turkey and China. To learn more, or to find out how to participate, NSLI For Youth.
Here’s a peek at what our students did during the summer of 2011 in Beijing. Six weeks in Beijing: NSLI-Y Scholars discover .