THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER
FACULTY OF HUMANITIES
SCHOOL OF ARTS, HISTORIES AND CULTURES
Classics and Ancient History
Application for Retention Funding
Context
Some 30 years ago, in response to rapidly falling numbers of schools teaching
Latin and Greek, Classics and Ancient History in universities across the country
reinvented itself with the development of large-scale programmes in language courses
for beginners at university and in classical literature and history taught through the
medium of translation. This reinvention saved the discipline, but it brought its own
problems. Getting students both to engage with the extremely demanding task of
learning a corpus language from scratch in university, alongside widespread and
readily available study in translation, and also to study those translations in a
meaningful way with a proper awareness of their original forms, are tasks at the heart
of our programmes in Classics and Ancient History. For a range of reasons relating to
large numbers and changes in school teaching, we have found both tasks becoming
increasingly difficult, with distressingly large failure rates in the beginners language
courses, relatively low take-up rate of those courses in the first place, disappointing
progression to advanced language courses, the necessity in too many cases for
students to change programmes because they are unable to deal with the demands of
linguistic course, and, more nebulously but most widely, a general hesitance among
our students about engaging with primary material.
In response to the situation, we set up a working party early in 2010 which made a
number of recommendations relating to language teaching, most of which are in the
process of being implemented for 2010-11. One of those proposals was to arrange an
induction course during registration week for all first-year students of Classics and
Ancient History, and open to others planning on taking a language module with us,
which would introduce them to the ancient languages, enable everyone to gain some
familiarity with the Greek alphabet, undo some of the scary mystique about Latin and
Greek, while at the same time enabling students to make the transition to universitystyle learning, which with something as intensive as beginners languages requires
extensive and rapid readjustment of expectations and of time management. The
course would also have a considerable benefit in helping students to gain a sense of
group identity and personal interaction with staff at this crucial time at the beginning
of their university experience. Because of the high value we place on language
teaching and on the student experience, we have already agreed that all academic staff
not on research leave will be required to contribute to the teaching of this course.
It is in support of this course that we now request modest funding. We believe
that it would aid the success of the course and the development of group identity, and
thus help to improve retention rates in the longer term, if it were possible for us to
offer refreshments to those involved. We would also like to be in a position to
employ a number of teaching assistants to help with the small group sessions, since
the total number of tutors required would by a considerable margin exceed the
number of academic staff in the department.
The original plan put forward by the working party was for a two-day course
during registration week, but it was the view of the department that in the first year at
any rate we should begin with a single day, with the hopes of increasing it in future.
An Introduction to the Ancient Languages: Course Outline
Day 1
Session 1: 9.30-10.30 Introduction. Three parallel sessions: one each for Ancient
History and Classical Studies students, in each case excluding those planning on
taking Advanced language in their first year (not impossible, but in practice extremely
unlikely), the Classical Studies meeting to include also those Classics/Latin/Greek
Course 2 students who are beginners in both their chosen languages; one meeting for
all the others, who will in practice be those doing at least one advanced language.
These parallel sessions would include a pep talk on the purpose and value of
language-learning, tailored especially to the particular programme, together with an
overview of the shape of what students can/must do in their programme.
Session 2: 11-1 Crucial Information for Everyone Studying a Classical Subject. This
session would be for everyone except those few with A-level Greek. It would involve
learning the Greek alphabet, both for those who plan to learn Greek and for those who
do not, but who would benefit from being able to look up a word in a Greek
dictionary (i.e. everyone). It would also involve exercises on looking up in
dictionaries Latin and Greek words which one might meet in literary or historical
discussions, even when studying in translation. Finally, there would be a session on
inflected languages and how to tackle them. It would be highly desirable if this
session could be done in small groups.
Session 3: 2-4 Classes in Latin or Greek.
Those planning on taking one of the languages as a beginner would obviously go to
the class for the relevant language; anyone planning on taking up both languages from
scratch would normally be encouraged to go to Greek, but might have particular
reason to go to Latin; those not currently planning on taking a language would be
invited to choose which they would like to sample, or would otherwise be assigned to
one or the other. We would use the course books planned for the elementary courses,
making photocopies of the early pages so that the unsure do not have to buy anything.
(I am assuming that we would cover sufficiently little of the book that this would not
break copyright.)
Session 4: 4-5 Retrospective and Prospective. This session would need quite a lot of
people to be on hand to discuss any changes of registration (programme or course
units) which might arise from the experience of the course.
Budget
The likely numbers attending would be over 100 students, plus 15-20 staff and
assistants. We request funding under two headings: catering and teaching assistants.
Coffee/tea x 3 for 120 = £630 (FoodOnCampus prices)
Sandwich lunch for 120 = £450 (FoodOnCampus cheapest option)
Water and juice = £100
Total for catering = £1180
In order to allow groups of around 8-10 students, even if all available staff contribute
we would still require five teaching assistants, each teaching for four hours but in
effect being required to be present for the whole day. The normal school rate for
GTAs is £35.20 per hour. If the assistants were paid that amount for the actual
teaching, it would seem reasonable that we could additionally require them to be there
for the rest of the day, since the course would not involve them in much marking.
20 x £35.20 = £704
Grand total: £1884
Online technologies
The working party is separately investigating the further use of online technologies to
support language learning. We are aiming to learn from the experience of colleagues
in modern languages, while we may also be able to build on the model of Polly Low's
blackboard quizzes in first-year Greek history. Such work would relate not to this
introductory course, which is decidedly face-to-face, intensive, and relational, but to
the ongoing support of those (we hope, eventually, the majority) who continue with
language courses.
Who Will Benefit?
All students on classical programmes, which have a projected intake of just over 100.
A significant number of students on other programmes, both undergraduate and taught
postgraduate, also take beginners language courses in Latin and Greek: although the
course would be designed for new Classics undergraduates, it would be open to such
others as well, and would be likely to be highly beneficial. In future it might be
possible and desirable for all students on courses in mediaeval studies and related
subjects to follow the Latin programme.
Measuring success
Success will be measured by the uptake, continuation, and pass rate for beginners
language courses, progression to advanced language courses, and also (although this
may only be anecdotal) in the willingness of students studying translation to engage
with primary texts. It is our aim to overcome the need for forced changes of
programmes for students, after one or two semesters, as a result of failure in language
courses.
Future funding
This request for funding relates only to the course in its initial year. Since it forms
part of a wider programme of measures taken to improve the student experience of
language courses, success is not dependent on the identification of specific ongoing
funding.
Account Code
AA02805