The Ohio State University: Pre-Departure 

This is the post excerpt.

Buenos Días and bienvenidos to my blog! A little background into this story is: the Center for Latin American Studies at The Ohio State University announced its one-month seminar project, “Teaching the Andes,” in Otavalo, Ecuador and Cusco, Peru, and the word “Ecuador” had me at hola. I applied and was accepted to participate in this amazing program, along with 11 other educators from various disciplines. The purpose of the program is to promote and spread knowledge of the Andes by providing opportunities for K-12 educators to experience firsthand the history, politics, language, and culture of the Andes. In addition, as a participants in the program, we will be gaining a cultural competency in Quechua, the most spoken indigenous language in the Americas. The goal is that we will accurately and effectively bring the Andes into the classroom through standards-based approaches. Along with studying the language of the Andes, we will be participating in a wide variety of activities that explore the history, politics, and culture of the region.

Needless to say, I am super excited about this opportunity! Not only will this benefit my students exponentially in ways that will come up later in this blog, it will also be a refreshing time for me professionally and personally. I’ve already met and spent the past few days at The Ohio State for pre-departure orientation with 11 other teachers from around the nation and our fearless profesora, Dr. Michelle Wibbelsman.

​​​Here are some photos and highlights from our pre-departure orientation so far! Nos vemos más tarde.

Fulbright k12 and Más Allá workshop
Happening at the same time as pre-departure orientation – a summer music camp hosted by the Center for Latin American studies. This coincidence accompanied our orientation at OSU well because the students in the music camp were learning native songs in Quechua. Here we are with our pan flutes and drums – ready to roll. By the way, check out the video to listen to the talent of these high school students! To see some amateurs (“Fulbrighters”- us) their first time playing some musical instruments, click here.

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An Introduction to Peru
Megan Hasting is Assistant Director for the Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) at The Ohio State University. She is the manager of the “Teaching the Andes” project and has been in contact with participants from the beginning of the application process. In this photo, she is introducing a brief summary of the history of Peru and Inca Empire.

This picture shows a little Quechua/Kichwa 101 before sending us off to the Andes. Kichwa is the native language of Ecuador and Quechua is the indigenous language in Peru. We will be learning both!

Quechua vs. Kichwa
Dr. Terrell Morgan is Professor of Hispanic Linguistics and Director of CLAS at Ohio State. As founder and director of Ohio State’s annual Summer Seminars Abroad for Spanish Teachers (SSAST), he established SSAST to introduce educators to both Hispanic linguistics and less-commonly taught languages in immersion contexts. Academically, Dr. Morgan is a phonologist and dialectologist interested in documenting linguistic diversity and finding new ways to put students, teachers, and fellow researchers in touch with the intimate details of the sounds and structures of Latin American languages.

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