Student interest in residing in language houses at colleges across the country is on the rise, according to an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Randolph Pope, Chair of the Department of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese, cited immersion in the language as the main advantage of living in language houses.
"It brings a language to life and I think that is absolutely crucial to discover that the language is useful in daily exchange with people," Pope said. "Language needs reinforcement. You can learn something and believe you know it but unless you use it in different situations, you don't really know."
Third-year College student Andy Nosal agreed that immersion is invaluable when trying to master a language. "Nothing's better than actually speaking it, it's great practice," he said.
Nosal added that for students who are not able to live abroad, the language houses are "the next best thing."
Nosal said he believes that the application process for becoming a resident of a language houses has become more competitive in recent years.
"It's pretty competitive to get it. This year 25 people applied, and probably less than half will get in," said Nosal.
According to the Chronicle article, some colleges have reportedly asked the Modern Language Committee to establish a committee dedicated to helping colleges and universities expand such residential language programs. This increased interest in language houses has been accompanied by increased enrollment in some foreign language courses, as well.
"In Spanish, there has been an increase across the nation," Pope said. "There has been an increase in the number of students taking Italian. In Spanish we are always adding sections and would love to add more."
German Prof. Benjamin Bennett said that the language houses at the University were first created by students who wanted immersion in the language, and that students continue to govern the way the houses are run.
"We try not to run the language houses, we try to leave them in the hands of students," Bennett said.
Pope added that besides offering immersion in the language, language houses offer immersion in different cultures.
"Studying language isn't just studying languages, we're studying different cultures. If you aren't switching cultures, you aren't really getting into the languages," Pope said.
First-year College student Marta Cook cited both immersion in language and culture as her main reasons for applying to the French House.
"Monday through Thursday we have dinner together, you can speak French and practice your speaking skills everyday. They have a French library and French cuisine," Cook said.
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