Mission Statement for the Russian BA Program
The mission of the Russian Program at the undergraduate level is to instill in our majors functional
proficiency, cultural literacy and a greater sensitivity, tolerance and appreciation for diversity through the
study of Russian language, literature and culture. (Functional proficiency means the ability to use Russian
as a medium for communication in real-life tasks and interactions with other speakers of Russian.) The
program prepares students in various fields including, but not limited to, education, international relations,
politics, finance, and commerce.
Learning Goals
The program aims to develop the reading, writing, speaking and listening skills necessary for using Russian
as a medium for communication in real-life tasks and interactions with native speakers of Russian. At the
same time, a successful program will ensure that students have a firm understanding of the diverse nature
of Russian culture throughout the ages and a thorough familiarity with the conventions for discussing this
culture in an intellectual manner.
Specific Objectives
A. Language Knowledge.
Using the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines as a
basis for our own goals, the Russian Program aims to graduate majors who can perform tasks at
Intermediate High and Advanced Low levels of proficiency. Proficiency in ACTFL terms is understood to
describe a range of qualities rather than an absolute norm and will vary according to task type, language
function, topic, skill (listening, speaking, reading, writing), and so forth. Nevertheless, we have identified
the following types of tasks, topics and functions we expect our graduates to be able to do with a fair
degree of consistency, fluency and accuracy:
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Graduates will be able to contribute to most informal and some formal conversations with
sufficient accuracy, clarity, and precision to convey their intended message without
misrepresentation or confusion. They will for the most part be understood by native speakers
unaccustomed to dealing with non-native speakers.
Graduates will have some knowledge of how to vary the register (formality level) of their speech.
Graduates will be able to talk about personal interests, topics of general interest, Russian literature
and culture, and so forth in the target language
Graduates will be able to listen to connected discourse on a variety of topics and understand main
ideas and most details. This requires processing of different tenses, knowledge of discourse
structure, cohesive devices, pronoun systems, and more.
Graduates will be able to read somewhat longer and more complex prose that have been written
for native speakers and not edited or adapted for students. They will be able to read a wide variety
of text types such as poems, plays, novels, magazine articles, newspaper articles, brochures,
pamphlets, menus, letters, and so forth, Some texts they will understand completely; for others
they will be able to grasp the main idea and some or most details.
Graduates will be able to compose routine social correspondence, take notes, write cohesive
summaries and resumes, as well as narratives and descriptions of a factual nature in the target
language. Additionally, they will be able to complete course-related writing tasks such as essays
and term papers in the target language. They will be able to defend a thesis statement and make
stylistic decisions based on the needs of specific audiences and on specific writing purposes.
B. Appreciation for Russian Literature
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Graduates will be familiar with conventions for interpreting literature.
Graduates will be able to place literary works within a historical context.
Graduates will develop a sense for thematic and rhetorical structure as well as stylistic devices.
Graduates will be able to employ a variety of theoretical approaches to interpret Russian literature
in context.
Graduates will be familiar with a broad variety of genres.
C. Cultural Literacy and Appreciation for Diversity
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Graduates are expected to have a historical knowledge of Russian history and culture and to
understand the diverse nature of German culture throughout the ages.
Graduates will be able to discuss cultural differences, distinguishing between fact, opinion,
stereotyping, etc.
Through the study Russian, our students will learn to recognize and esteem diversity as they gain
the skills necessary for sensitive, effective interpersonal and intercultural interaction. To this end,
study abroad will be encouraged.
Through the study of foreign language, our students learn to view concepts, issues, events, and
themes from the perspectives of diverse ethnic and cultural groups and to esteem diversity as they
gain the skills necessary for sensitive, effective interpersonal and intercultural communication.
Additionally, in learning to recognize and accept cultural differences, they are able to maintain an
ongoing assessment of their own cultural values and behaviors. A successful program will instill
in our students a lifetime commitment and desire to continue learning about languages, literatures,
and cultures different from their own.
Approaches and Measures
Faculty in Russian use several tools to evaluate students’ progress through the BA major program
and their achievements upon completion of it. These tools include:
Quizzes
Midterm and final examinations
Essays of varying length to demonstrate both content knowledge and development of language
skills
Term papers
Modified Oral Proficiency Interview
Outcomes Assessment Exam
The sequence of courses constituting the BA major in Russian represents a means for students to improve
their receptive and expressive skills in written and spoken Russian and to increase their knowledge and
understanding of the literary and other cultural achievements of speakers of Russian over the centuries.
Their participation in class discussions and their written work (quizzes, papers, tests, exams) provide a
basis for evaluation of their progress through this program. During their last semester prior to graduation
they take the Outcomes Assessment Exam which was developed—and has been revised—by department
faculty due to the lack of any commercially available standard major field test. This exam’s three sections
focus on Russian grammar, literature and culture. In order to assess students’ comprehension and active
use of spoken Russian, they also undergo a modified version of the ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview.
Timeline
Faculty discuss students’ progress at regularly held meetings of the unit. Each semester, as
students complete the proficiency interview and the outcomes assessment test, the results of these
instruments are reviewed to provide a means of establishing what adjustments, if any, need to be made to
either (or both) the instruments or some aspect of the coursework.