UWO Study abroad at Rondine is a program promoted by the association Rondine Cittadella della Pace and the University of Western Ontario (Canada), addressed as well to the larger Western Community through the partnership with the affiliated Colleges Huron and King’s. The program is aimed at any student enrolled at Western (Affiliates included) and interested in pursuing the study of Italian language and culture at the beginning and intermediate level; students with interest in international relations, peace building, conflict resolution, intercultural competence.
The activities will take place in Rondine Citadella della Pace, based near Arezzo, Tuscany, in Italy on May 2017, while the participants will be based in the city of Arezzo, in Italy.
The training activities:
Italian for Travellers II
Students of Italian for Travellers I would also be eligible to take an additional 0.5 credit course, Italian
for Travellers II, running for a further two weeks, Monday to Friday for three hours a day (30 hours) plus
10 hours of Rondine’s weekly seminars for a total of 40 contact hours. This would give them access to
second year Italian courses at Western the following semester.
As a matter of fact, the two 0.5 credits, together with Italian for Travellers I, would be considered
equivalent to a first year Italian language course, ITA1030, and prerequisite for second year admission.
Intermediate Italian
Designed for students with a basic knowledge of Italian, the course builds upon this knowledge placing
emphasis on the development of effective oral and written skills in a real-life environment.
The primary objective is that students learn how to communicate their ideas with clarity in a variety of
settings.
The course will last four weeks, students will be in class for 4 hours a day for 5 days a week, from 9:00am
to 01:00am, a lunch break, and then further cultural activities or time to study during the afternoon.
In addition to this, students will share common meals, and be involved in sightseeing and other practical
activities during the weekend. Students will be immersed in Italian culture in the heart of Tuscany
through daily interactions with native speakers, and through the screening of films, the study of pop
songs, and the reading of some examples of non-fictional texts in the classroom.
Seminar
UWO students will have the opportunity to attend seminar or classes or conferences organized by
Rondine which focus on various aspects of human rights, international law, war crimes, genocides, and
conflict resolution.
Rondine has been running these activities for many years and our students will benefit from the
presence of renowned experts and witnesses of relevant events.
The seminar will last two weeks and will combine frontal lessons, active working groups and non formal
training activities for a total of 40 hours, with classes for 4 hours a day for 5 days a week.
