Meeting Minutes of the German Section Summer Workshops

June 21, 2005
August 9, Morning
August 9, Afternoon
August 10, 2005
August 19, 2005
August 22, 2005

German Section Minutes June 21, 2005

   Attendees: Mark Thamert, Lisa Ohm, John Kulas, Andreas Kiryakakis, Wendy Sterba
   The meeting began at 10:40 Ended at 12:05 
    Mary Niedenfuer's Office, CSB

 Agenda:

1. Review team Process checklist
2. Touch on German Studies
3. Go through, prioritize Action Plans
4. Pull out items from other goals that are simple or appropriate
5. Plan agenda for August Workshop/Meetings

1-2. We reviewed the Checklist, set the agenda and introduced elements of German Studies by reviewing Heidi Byrnes’ Action Agenda and the Middlebury curriculum.

Andreas suggested we consider what makes SJU/CSB unique and that we focus our program around an element such as the German monastic tradition, HMML, the larger Stearns County German community (the latter being primary.) Andreas became task leader on this issue.

3a. We prioritized Course & Program Goals. Andreas became task leader on this topic. 

211              Number 2 priority

212             Number 1 priority

311/2      Number 3 priority

Upper Div     

360             Number 5 priority

344           

Mj/mn      Number 4 priority

k-12          Number 5 priority

Gm St        Number 2 priority

We collapsed the 311/312 and 212 area together and chose three goals to focus on first:

#1. 212/311/312

#2.  211

#3.   Majors and Minors

We listed Tasks for 212/311/312 Task area (Wendy became task leader on this issue.):

                  1.      Agree on linguistic levels to be attained

2.      Determine literary proficiency (for 212)

3.      Re-examine course level designations

4.      Consider whether to place in 212 or not

5.      Review Core requirements

6.      Consider in terms of the German Studies option

7.      Clarify teaching methodology(ies)

We will e-mail about this before the meeting

3b. We prioritized Internal Increase of Majors and Minors Mark is area task leader .

1.  Wk with admissions           12133  = 10

2. Impr Relations w/”              11133  =  9

3. Summer Regist plan            13132  = 10

4. Symposium                         13121  =  8

5. Data -why studs drop Gm  11232  =  9       (Questionnaire addresses)

6. Bring visibility and fun       32323  = 13     Number 1 priority

7.  Checklist for Teachers       32133  = 12     Number 2 priority

8.  Summer immersion            21223  = 10

9.  Sample 4 yr plans               32222  = 11     Number 3 priority

10. Seek compatible dbl mj     31133  = 11     Number 3 priority

11.  Id fac/staff friends           11223  =  9

12.  Renew Curriculum           31233  = 12     Number 2 priority

Lisa wanted to broaden number 6 to include “Academic Ethos” and Program responses to current events (like the German Pope)

Priority areas:

#6 Visibility and Fun:             Andreas became task leader on this issue.

#7 Checklist for Teachers       Wendy became task leader on this issue.

#12 Renew Curriculum           Wendy became task leader on this issue.

#9 and # 10 are related           Lisa became task leader on this issue.

4. We skipped Item 4 on the Agenda for lack of time

 5. We set the Agenda for the Upcoming August Workshop

 Aug 9:

 Morning: 3 hour discussion of German Studies issue Wendy discussion leader.

 We must read articles, compare curricula,  think about what we would want for a German Studies program we could own.

            Afternoon: Discussion of Course Goals – Andreas discussion leader

Aug 10:

            Morning: Finish up with Course Goals and go on to Marketing (Mark

                        Discussion leader.)

            Afternoon: Finish Marketing and Set agenda for next meeting(s)

Andreas will add review of Placement test after 2 years of use to his task list.

Mark will be gone July 13 to August 2 but will be reachable by e-mail.

 Submitted by Wendy Sterba

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

German Section Minutes August 9 - Morning, 2005

Workshop Minutes AM August 9, 2005 (as amended August 10, 2005)

Present: Andreas, John, Lisa, Mark, Wendy

Mark guided the discussion. 

1. Mark reminded the group of our mission and vision and reviewed the agenda for today.

2. German Studies. Wendy introduced the topic and led the discussion. She presented her comprehensive review of the literature on the topic.

1. Topic: What is our motivation for modifying our program? We cited the following: to increase the number of majors and minors; to assist students in career aspirations, (what can one do with a German major); to combat the stereotype that German is not practical. See the document “Motivations for Changing Focus” which Wendy is attaching to these minutes.
2. Topic: Do we have a unique program? The following were cited: we don’t demand a comprehensive review of German literature; Stearns County/monastic tradition; HMML; Salzburg
3. Topic: Should our goal be to develop a coherent new program or should it be a task in progress—a process of trial and error?
4. Topic: Should we expressly be trying to increase diversity among students? We decided this was a marketing issue.

3. German Studies: possible programmatic approaches. Wendy presented three for discussion.

#1.  Literature based. Essentially, the traditional literary analysis program.. 

#2.  German Area Studies. This program defines culture traditionally. That is, it includes literature but draws in as well philosophy, art, music, architecture, history, etc.  

#3.  Wendy’s handout carefully documented a Cultural Studies program which was heavily based on sociological and anthropological issues. Our English department is currently leaning in this direction. The text is not the critical issue; rather the interaction between text and recipient. For this any text will do.  We could adopt this program explicitly as a defining principle. Or we could include a cultural studies component as part of a differently defined program. 

4. German Studies: Single track or two-track? Would we want to develop a second track to a major in which some courses are taught in English?  The latter could include courses taught in other departments or courses we teach in English.  Such a second track could be an individualized major. After discussing the issue a bit it was agreed to defer the topic.

5. 
   German Studies: Departmental discussion of Wendy’s presentation.

1. Does program # 2 not give us as well the best of #1 and #2?
2. We sought to distinguish the concept of “literature” and “literacy.” Literacy connotes a multi-layered process of understanding and communication. We decided to base our new program on the concept of a multiplicity of literacies (multiple competencies). These will include culture, literature, and language.  
3. We discussed the centrality of language to our program. What does it mean to be “central?” Do we have to know? Is some theoretical underpinning needed or is a mere description sufficient? We didn’t agree. Lisa proposed: “Fluency is a tool, but a central, though not the ultimate goal of our program (though it may be perceived so by our students who need fluency for jobs).
4. Somebody suggested we can define these literacies as we want. Thus, we can speak of literacies in literary genres and expanding that to include (auto)biographies, letters, practical texts as well as periods. One can speak of cultures mediated by language and not by sociology. 
5. Making a program genre based rather than period based influences pedagogy.

German Studies: Our program. A spirited, passionate, pointed yet collegial discussion marked by copious employment of flip charts to note a variety of redactions ensued. The emphasis was on devising a structure for our program which we could easily communicate to the students.  The ultimate consensus (decision) looked like this:

• Three levels of courses
• Level 3 is divided into two categories: Category  A and Category B.
• Language, Culture, Literature part of every course.

 Level One:  language, culture, snippets of literature   

                      111-211

 
Level Two: German, Austrian, Swiss culture today; culture, language, literature     

                              212, 311, 312

 Level Three Category A:

                               Survey, Culture, literature, language

Survey I

Survey II

*Either Survey I or Survey II will satisfy the requirement of German 344 for teaching certification

Medieval

Age of Goethe

Seminar: Period (German 355)       (e.g. Romanticism; Turn 

                                                    of Century (1900); Weimar; 

                                                    Contemporary)

19^th Century

20^th Century

Level Three Category B: 

Themes and Genres

                 Current Debates and Issues

Narrative Genres (stories and histories)

Poetry

                     Seminar: Themes and Genres                 (e.g. Novel;

                                                                        Women; current                                                          

                                                                        debates; Islam; immigration;

                                                                         Holocaust)

Requirements for the Major:

German 212; 311; 312            All required, any order

German 212 can be waived in exceptional circumstances;

Six Level Three Courses,  to include:

·         either Survey I or II;

·         at least one additional course Level Three A;

·         at least one course Level Three B.

These requirements also apply to courses transferred from abroad.

 We follow the requirement listed in the catalog (p. 90) which rarely allows more than 9 credits applicable to the major in any one semester. Exceptions will be granted only in unusual circumstances and must be arranged in advance. (Students taking courses in a foreign university are asked to register their program with the German section leader early in the term.)

 The German Option (a course in another department in which the German major will do significant work in German) is possible. Registration for the German Option is required using the special forms signed by course professor, German section leader, MCL departmental chair, and student before the beginning of the term. German option is limited to one course for each major.

Minor: Two Level Three courses

 Decisions made this morning:

1. Name: German Studies
2. Division of Courses into Level I, II, III.  Level III has Category A and Category B.
3. We adhere to the Catalog stipulation (p. 90) limited the number of credits in any semester applicable to major to 9 except in rare instances.
4. Level I courses are 111, 112, 211.

Level II courses (212, 311, 312) have a theme of German Studies Today.

5. German 212 needs further discussion.
6. requirements for Major:

6 Level III courses to include the following:

Survey I or II; one additional III A course; one III B course.

7. A minor needs two Level III courses.
8. New Courses:              Survey I

Survey II

Current Issues

Seminar: Themes and Genres

Stories and Histories

Seminar: Period (retain description of German 355)

End of AM minutes. PM minutes are written separately (Lisa).

Submitted by John Kulas

_________________________________________________________________________________

German Section Minutes August 9, Afternoon, 2005

August 9, 2005 – Afternoon

Structure of Major Curriculum:

-We  unanimously agreed on the change of name from German to German Studies.

-Survey I - Medieval to mid-19^th Century; Survey II – Mid-19^th Century to present.

-Lisa distributed six sample 4-year German Double major plans.

-New courses to apply for approval from CAPS: Survey I, Survey II, Current Issues, Seminar in Genre/Theme, Seminar in Stories/Narrative

Wed.’s Agenda:  Course Goals, Level Goals, Grant, Internal Marketing

Submitted by Lisa

_______________________________________________________________________________

German Section Minutes August 10, 2005

Workshop Minutes

German Studies Department

August 10, 2005 

8:15 A.M. to 3:30 P.M.    Quad 252

 Members present:   John, Lisa, Andreas, Wendy, Mark

       Immer strebend sich bemüht, den können wir erlösen. (Thanks, Andreas!)

 Note: Items in BOLD are decisions we made and items that need further action.

1.  Minutes of August 9 Workshop.  After a brief review of our Vision 2001, we discussed the minutes of our August 9th Workshop.  John and Lisa will amend the minutes and send them to us by e-mail as approved.  See O: drive (German Studies) for meeting minutes and other departmental documents.

 2.  Course Goals: Background Information.  Andreas led us in a discussion of course goals, starting by reviewing current catalog information regarding credits earned toward the major.  This information includes:  Credits earned elsewhere; Studies at Other Colleges; Advanced Placement; Credit by Examination.  See CSB/SJU Academic Catalog 2003-2005, pp. 22-23. 

 3.  Registrar's Affirmations.  Lisa conferred with Julie Gruska later in the day and affirmed the following policies:  (1) Courses taken in a CSB/SJU study abroad program are considered to be on-campus courses, and  (2)  Half the credits for both the first and the second major must be completed on campus.

 4.  Handbook.  We agreed that students entering the major should receive a German Studies Student Handbook from us which would outline these policies and includes other information like deadlines. 

5.   212 Goals –  a. Literary Analysis and Interpretation.  We then turned to the task of establishing clear goals for German 212, 311 and 312.   We started with the literary aspect of GERM 212 and after a spirited discussion of CORE HML guidelines, we decided to adopt the first five (of eight) levels of  Sylvie Debevec Henning's "Assessing Literary Interpretation Skills" as our basic policy for 212.  This article can be found in our O: drive as well as in Foreign Language Annals Vol. 25, 1992, pp. 344-47.   Here is a summary of the first five levels from that article.  Each level assumes the skills of the previous levels: 

Level 5
Understand function of: temporal structure(s); figurative language; caricature, satire.
Describe themes and motifs.
Recognize: rhetorical figures; cultural symbols; cultural allusions; narrative point of view; stylistic techniques; parody.
Recognize work's relation to: sociocultural, sociopolitical, historical contexts.
Distinguish between connotation and denotation.

Level 4
Recognize temporal structure(s).
Recognize figurative use of language. Recognize irony.
Recognize caricature, satire.
Recognize themes and motifs.

Level 3
Summarize plot.
Distinguish main plot from subplots.
Describe characters.
Distinguish types of poems.
Distinguish basics of prosody.

Level 2
Distinguish main events from lesser ones.
Distinguish major form minor characters.
Retell plot (retell story accurately).
Describe setting.

Level 1
Recognize events of intrigue (retell story w/errors, repeat, paraphrase, translate).
Distinguish characters and recognize their relationships.
Distinguish major genres: prose, drama, poetry.
Distinguish comedy from tragedy.

The more advanced and final three levels of the Sylvie Debevec Henning schema will be taught in our Level 3 courses (courses beyond 312).  These interpretive skills will include:

Level 8
Distinguish among critical strategies.
Distinguish tendencies within work.
Analyze critically work's relation to literary history; author's other works and philosophical context.

Level 7
Analyze critically: irony; cultural illusions; stylistic techniques; parody; narrative point of view; temporal structures; self-conscious techniques; themes and motifs.
Analyze critically work's relation to: historical, sociocultural, sociopolitical context.
Describe work's relation to literary history; author's other works; philosophical context.

Level 6
Understand function of: rhetorical figures; cultural symbols and allusions; stylistic techniques; narrative point of view; connotation, parody.
Describe work's relation to: sociocultural, sociopolitical, historical contexts.
Recognize self-conscious techniques other than irony. Describe irony.
Recognize work's relation to: literary history; philosophical context; author's other works.

6.  212 Goals –  b. Language Skills and Proficiencies.   We considered four language skills (reading, speaking, listening, and writing) and decided that our primary focus for our Level Two courses will be:  Reading Skills in 212;   Speaking and Listening Skills in 311; and Writing Skills in 312.  In 212 students will learn appropriate literary-critical terms in German based on the first five levels of Literary Analysis outlined above.  We need a common list of literary terms and definitions in German for ourselves and for our students.   The BYU proficiency test will be given at the beginning and end of each 212 course as is our departmental policy.  As we gather longitudinal data, we may establish more concrete goals for language acquisition at this level.  In addition, we will research more specific instruments to measure progress in students' development of reading skills during this course.  

7.  212 Goals –  c. Culture.   We have a new name for GERM 212:  Introduction to German Culture.  Our theme for all Level 3 courses (212-311-312) will be current issues, debates and events in German speaking countries.  We will include non-literary genres and films as appropriate.  We want our students to gain some awareness of multiple cultures within German speaking countries, e.g., Gastarbeiter, Turk-Germans, East Adriatic -Germans, Russian-Germans, Women and Men, Eastern and Western Germans,  GLBT Germans, and other "cultures."   In this context we will also raise the question of literary canon compared with choosing works which represent various cultures.   We may also explore the differences between "high" literature and Trivialliteratur.  

8.  311-312 Goals – c. Culture and Literature Competencies.    Instructors will choose any appropriate literary and other cultural texts, films and other media to enhance students' knowledge of contemporary German culture, including literature. 

9.  311-312 Goals – Language Competencies.   After a spirited discussion of whether we should follow a systematic or more analytical (ad hoc) approach in presenting and practicing grammar at this level, we decided to establish a list of recommended topics for each course as well as a checklist for our O: drive which we can use to report to what extent we covered these topics in a given term.    We will give the BYU proficiency test at the beginning and end of GERM 312.  We will decide soon on a common grammar book for all courses numbered GERM 211 and above.

            The instructor

311 (focus on speaking and listening skills): 
? the tenses, especially the perfect and simple past tenses
? conjunctions
? word order
? passive voice (at least a passive knowledge)
? subjunctive II
? modals
? infinitival clauses        

312: (focus on writing skills):
? the difference between the active and the statal passive
? subjunctive I  (at least a passive knowledge)
? the cases and adjective endings
? present and past participles used as adjectives
? extended participial modifiers  (at least a passive knowledge)
? prepositions
? prepositional complements (warten auf, denken über, denken von, u.s.w.)
? relative pronouns

10.  Goals for Level Three Courses.   We decided to draft goals for the following Level 3 courses as homework before our August 19 meetings. 

Andreas:  Survey Courses I and II;  Current Issues Course
Wendy:  Medieval and 20^th Century
Lisa:  Age of Goethe and 19^th Century
Mark:  Poetry and Narrative Prose
Team:  Seminars on Period and Seminars on Themes/Genres

11.  Use of Grant Monies – Idea Session.   Team members proposed the following ideas for the use of the external grant.  We will edit and prioritize this list at our August 19 workshop meetings. 

? Travel Germany-Austria-Switzerland for conferences or research.
? Travel to US conferences on current issues and culture in Germany-Austria-Switzerland.  These include such professional conferences as those sponsored by AATG, NEH, Goethe Institute, and the German Studies Association.
? Bring a Fulbright TA to our campuses to help tutor students and organize "German House" events.   We have been beneficiary of more than $2 million is Fulbright awards over the years.
? Ongoing curricular and faculty development workshops (like these summer workshops) each year.
? Bringing upbeat, lively speakers to campus to cover topics in current issues and cultural topics and to assist with German faculty development workshops here on campus. 
? German House programming and materials.
? Marketing materials and activities, e.g., web and hard-copy newsletters and brochures.
? Supplies for semester or annual cabaret or play.
? Essay contest with money prizes for High School juniors and seniors to help build relationships with effective high school German programs.
? Activities for high school German teachers:  program and dinner evenings; idea exchange; continuing education.
? Internal meetings and dinner evenings with CSB/SJU faculty and staff "stakeholders," e.g., admissions colleagues, faculty most likely to teach courses under the new German Option, other faculty stakeholders.  These get-togethers can be used to update our colleagues and to promote the double major.
? Team visits to effective American university/college German programs.
? Fund a German faculty semester exchange (e.g., airfare).  One of us switches places with a German faculty member from another university.

12.  At our next workshop meetings on August 19 we will reexamine this list and then prioritize the items.  Given that funding may extend for multiple years, we can decide which items can be accomplished before the end of January 2006, in time for our first report to our foundation.

13.  Team Process Check

Respectfully,
Mark