Name: Regina Ekaputri

E-mail: rekaputr@nd.edu

Language: Italian

Location of Study: Siena, Italy

Program of Study: Società Dante Alighieri

Sponsors: Center for the Study of Languages and Cultures, the Nanovic Institute for European Studies, Mimi Ravarino

Blog URL: http://blogs.nd.edu/sla2016/author/rekaputr/

 

 

 

A brief personal bio:

I’m a rising junior, originally from Jakarta, Indonesia. I’m studying Psychology, with a minor in Italian and Art History. I love reading, going to art museums, and watching plays, musicals, and soccer games. I hope to work at an art museum after I graduate!

Why this summer language abroad opportunity is important to me:

I hope to use this summer experience to deepen my knowledge in Italian language, and use it later on for my senior thesis. I plan to do an independent research on Italian Art Museums—combining my Psychology major and my Art History minor—focusing on how the educational approaches and the exhibition strategies in the museums in Italy help the visitors understand Italian Art. I believe that my study of the language would help to complement my art history and psychology background, enabling me to converse with the museum staff and visitors as I conduct relevant surveys for my research. Also, the linguistic skills would be useful for me to really understand the context and historical or social significance of the artworks. In the long run, I plan to pursue a graduate degree in Art History focusing on Italian Arts, or in Arts Education. Being one of the major art capitals in the world, Italy is the dream location for me to work. I believe that mastering the Italian language is very critical for me to succeed in this field.

What I hope to achieve as a result of this summer study abroad experience:

I hope to have an improved understanding of the Italian language after this summer. I want to be able to improve in my listening comprehension and conversation skills, my knowledge of the grammars and sentence structures. I really love reading, and I want to come back from the summer being able to read Italian literature in its original form. I also want to immerse myself in the Italian culture and history, getting to know the language through the locals. I hope to get both the language proficiency and the cultural competency out of this summer experience.

My specific learning goals for language and intercultural learning this summer:

1) At the end of the summer, I will be able to communicate in Italian with native speakers on a wide range of topics, such as the arts, social, and political issues.

2) At the end of the summer, I will be able to understand Italian culture with a significant familiarity, and engage in discussion on cultural traditions specifically in the Siena and Toscana area I will be staying at.

3) At the end of the summer, I will be able to apply my knowledge of the vocabularies, grammars and sentence structures to read and comprehend Italian news articles or books in their native language.

4) At the end of the summer, I will be able to speak, read, write and listen at a level of proficiency equal to two semesters beyond my current Italian coursework placement at Notre Dame.

My plan for maximizing my international language learning experience:

I plan to take full advantage of my summer in Siena by exploring the city and the neighboring regions, compiling a list of landmarks and attractions that I want to visit, and participating to the social and cultural extracurricular activities that my program organizes for all the visiting students. I plan to expose myself to the cultural events happening around the city, especially the Palio in July! I hope to not only get to know Siena, but also travel to other parts of Italy to learn more about the country as a whole.