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F O C U S
Beyond the Basics
W
hen Cornelius
the grammar structure
Kubler began
takes a lot of time and
developing a new basic
Kubler leads a videotaping session in Taipei with Deborah Hsu ’00 (right)
and a friend in front of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial.
patience.”
Chinese language
But the videos in Kubler’s course help to make
the help of students who later became his
course shortly after his
learning a new language more engaging, says
research assistants. An earlier version of the cur-
arrival at Williams in
Nam, who later honed his language skills editing
riculum received a $5,000 grand prize from the
1991, he had no idea
video clips as Kubler’s research assistant.
Tuttle Language Grant competition for new Asian
the project would entail
Cornelius Kubler
The videos also offer lessons in Chinese cul-
textbooks in 1999.
over a decade of work,
ture, which, Kubler says, is just as important as
more than a dozen trips to Asia and getting
grammar and pronunciation when learning a new
master’s and doctorate in linguistics from Cornell
arrested by the Chinese secret police on suspicion
language. Filming the hundreds of hours worth of
and a master’s in Chinese literature from
of espionage.
video was itself a lesson in culture and diplomacy.
National Taiwan University, was chair of Asian
On one trip to China, airport security officials took
and African languages at the U.S. State
to fund completion of the project, the Stanfield
apart Kubler’s recording equipment. He also was
Department Foreign Service Institute. He has
Professor of Asian Studies says the time, travel and
arrested by Chinese secret police for unauthorized
taught at the National Taiwan Normal University,
run-ins with the police were worth it. “My hope is
videotaping and had to call the U.S. embassy to
was principal of the American Institute in Taiwan
that the course will make the learning of this
get him out. During another visit, he rented a
Chinese Language and Area Studies School and
important language—spoken by more people
hotel room to serve as a recording studio and
worked as a scientific linguist in Mandarin,
than any other—more efficient and more interest-
scheduled a day’s worth of interviews with young
Cantonese and Mongolian for the Foreign Service
ing,” Kubler says.
men and women. Thinking he was operating a
Institute. He has written or co-written seven
house of ill repute, detectives questioned Kubler
books and approximately 40 articles on linguis-
about his activities.
tics and foreign language pedagogy.
Today, with a Faculty World Fellowship helping
The college-level course consists of five books
with accompanying audiotapes, videotapes, CDROMs and a Web site—media that match the
various ways in which students learn languages.
Before coming to Williams, Kubler, who has a
Kubler has taught “Basic Chinese” in draft
To see video clips that accompany “Basic
form at Williams for several years, revising it with
Chinese,” visit www.williams.edu/Asian/chinese.
Using the technology, students can study grammar
or participate in a vocabulary drill session on their
Every Fossil Tells A Story
own, allowing the instructor to focus on conversamagine a fossil so tiny that to the naked
locations as varied as
eye it is smaller than a grain of sand. But
the Pacific Ocean,
written skills, Kubler’s Web site, developed at the
magnified 1,000 times it tells the story of the
Mediterranean Sea
College’s Center for Technology in the Arts and
history of the relationship between the
and Weddell Sea in
Humanities, includes dozens of video clips of con-
oceans and the earth’s climate. It’s a story
Antarctica. And while
versations between Chinese speakers in Beijing
that Heather Stoll ’94, assistant professor of
most of the earth
and Taipei.
geosciences, is working to unravel.
science community has focused on the changes
tion and usage during class time, Kubler says.
Because “Basic Chinese” emphasizes oral over
“Language learning in general is pretty
I
Unlike many geologists, whose research
Heather Stoll
in species of fossils through time, Stoll has found
monotonous,” says Hoyoon Nam ’01, a native
tends to focus on a specific region or time
that useful information can be gleaned from
Korean speaker who took his first Chinese class
period, Stoll’s research on climate change
studying their chemistry as well.
as a Williams sophomore. “Memorizing vocabu-
has her analyzing marine samples ranging
lary, working on your pronunciation and learning
from 8,000 to 55 million years old and from
8 | W ILLIAMS A LUMNI R EVIEW | S PRING 2004
During the past five years, Stoll has developed
a way to measure how fossilized marine algae
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Teacher Training
any recent Williams graduates have chosen to work for a few years in
M
basic ideas of teaching, and their assignments
private schools or to take assignments with Teach for America before
include reflecting on their best and worst
going on to pursue graduate degrees or jobs in other fields. But in an effort to
educational experiences, teaching a skill and
guide more students into long-term careers in education, the College created
designing a school. The course prepares them for
the program in teaching in 1996. Under the direction of director Susan Engel,
Engel’s 300-level advanced seminar in teaching, which introduces students to
students can experience teaching in a variety of ways, depending on their
ideas and methods in education and gives them the opportunity to student
interests. Graduates who participated in program offerings have gone on to earn
teach in area schools.
Susan Engel
advanced degrees in education and become classroom teachers. They also have
chosen education-related careers in government, public policy and administra-
THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE: Engel believes there’s more to becoming a
tion, and one even founded an independent school.
teacher than having expertise in the subject matter. Great teachers, she says,
need to know how to share their knowledge with others. Engel hopes to convey
BEYOND THE CLASSROOM: Every September Engel organizes an informational
to Williams students that there is no better time to begin thinking and learning
teaching lunch for students interested in the program. About 50 new students
about teaching than when they are committed to the liberal arts. She also wants
attend each year. She also publishes a booklet for Williams students, faculty and
them to understand that focused graduate work is crucial to understanding the
the College community that includes suggested coursework for students
process of education and to becoming a great teacher.
interested in careers as teachers as well as educational opportunities, such as
supervising after-school study halls or volunteering as adult literacy tutors in the
EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY: Engel attended Sarah Lawrence College and
community. Engel also organizes a speaker series, which is open to the public.
received a doctorate from City University of New York. She came to Williams in
In February New Yorker magazine contributing writer Louis Menand, was to
1991 as a professor of developmental psychology. After leaving the College to
discuss the importance of liberal arts education.
pursue other opportunities, she returned in 1996 to help develop and direct the
program in teaching. Engel is educational advisor and co-founder of the
TEACHING THE TEACHERS: This spring Engel is teaching “Psychology of
Hayground School in Bridgehampton, N.Y. She is the author of The Stories
Education,” a new 200-level course of about 55 students. Psychology 101 is
Children Tell: Making Sense of the Narratives of Childhood and Context is
the only prerequisite. Students from all academic backgrounds are exposed to
Everything: The Nature of Memory and is working on her third book.
responded to climate change in the past. By
typically have no prior knowledge of geological
examining the chemical makeup of the fossils,
systems, they use her method of examining the
she can determine how fast the organisms were
makeup of fossils for their final projects. Stoll
growing during their lifetimes and how each
also speaks around the world at geological
responded to changing levels of carbon dioxide
conferences, teaching her method to other
in the air.
scientists interested in studying climate changes
Stoll hopes to learn how algae in the oceans
at other times in the earth’s history.
Detail of 55-million-year-old coccolith fossils.
Valley, she was back in town to have lunch with
may help keep the climate system balanced. Her
A geology major at Williams, Stoll earned a
her former thesis advisor Paul Karabinos, who
research so far points to the fact that algae may
doctorate from Princeton and spent three years
told her of an opening in his department and
help us by absorbing excess carbon dioxide.
in Spain doing postdoctoral research, teaching
encouraged her to apply. She joined the geology
Two years ago Stoll designed a course on
and developing her method of using chemistry
department as a visiting professor in fall 2001
to study fossils. Six years after leaving the Purple
and was named assistant professor in 2002.
climate change. Though most of her students
S PRING 2004 | W ILLIAMS A LUMNI R EVIEW | 9