Monthly update to members of the Slavic and East European Teachers Association of Washington (SEETAW), highlighting announcements and news posted in the International Education Washington SEETAW Blog. Questions? Contact Michele Anciaux Aoki seetaw@uw.edu.
Quick News
Two of our members have updated their bios on the Members page. Since we launched SEETAW in 2018 (six years ago!), both have received their PhDs at the University of Washington Slavic Department. Congratulations, Dr. Nathan Marks and Dr. Veronica Muskheli!
Welcome to the SEETAW Blog (posted 5/6/2024)
The Slavic and East European Teachers Association of Washington (SEETAW) was formed in October 2018 to provide recognition of and support to the growing number of teachers of Russian and other Slavic and East European languages in Washington state. These teachers are providing an invaluable service to children and teenagers in our state who are Heritage language speakers of these languages and are eager to develop their proficiency in both the spoken and written word. In addition, we hope to increase interest in expanding language programs for second language learners who have an interest in the languages and cultures of these regions and perhaps hope to live, work, study, or travel there in the future.
https://depts.washington.edu/seetaw/index.php
SEETAW’s website is hosted by the University of Washington Language Learning Center at: https://depts.washington.edu/seetaw/index.php. Please visit us there. Internationaledwa.org is hosting the SEETAW Blog to provide a common space for sharing announcements, events, and opportunities. If you have information to post, please email it to seetaw@uw.edu.
SEETAW is an informal organization. Although “Washington” is included in our name, we welcome language educators and other interested community members from anywhere to participate in our community. It’s free to join: https://depts.washington.edu/seetaw/join.php.
Slovenia: Language, Culture, and Society at a Crossroads (posted 5/7/2024)
Michael Biggins is delighted to share that he’ll be leading the University of Washington’s first ever Early Fall Start intensive study abroad program in Slovenia with 15 UW students from a wide range of majors participating. The trip will take place September 1-21, 2024. (Michael indicates that there are still a few open spots.) Read more…
UN Sustainable Development Goals OER Lessons (posted 5/7/2024)
Developed by the World Affairs Council of Seattle, this teaching and learning module provides a series of lessons that engage students in exploring the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. You will find the student-specific instructions provide appropriate translations to assist teachers and students of heritage languages. Overall, these lessons will support students in developing the knowledge, skills, and dispositions that will prepare them for college, career, and civic life.
https://oercommons.org/courseware/lesson/105481/overview.
Lessons 1-6 in other languages: Russian | Romanian | Spanish | Ukrainian.
Coalition of Community-Based Heritage Language Schools (posted 5/21/2024)
The Coalition of Community-Based Language Schools is a nationwide initiative established to support, guide, and promote the interests of community-based heritage language schools and organizations across the United States. Slavic and East European languages are well-represented among the Language Representatives, including:
Albanian | Bulgarian | Czech/Slovak | Hungarian | Polish | Russian | Serbian | Ukrainian
We are very lucky to have Angela Hasheva as the Bulgarian language representative. There are also State Representatives, including, from Washington state, including Ema Shirk, the Heritage and Dual Language Program Supervisor and Multilingual Education State Supervisor in the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), Washington state.
Please ensure that your school is documented! Simply take a few minutes to complete the Heritage Language Programs in the United States Survey.
EVENTS
11th Annual Heritage Language Schools Conference
The Coalition of Community-Based Heritage Language Schools is excited to invite you to participate in its 11th annual conference! This event will be hybrid, held both on site at American University in Washington, DC and online on October 4-5, 2024. Please explore the conference website, learn about the plenary speakers, and register here! Feel free to share the conference Facebook event as well as LinkedIn event widely and invite your colleagues! If you would like to receive announcements about future events and conferences from the Coalition, sign up for their newsletter.
