美国学生通过STARTALK学习俄语

STARTALK Language Program Teaches Intensive¹ Russian 美国学生通过STARTALK学习俄语

STARTALK is a language immersion² program for students and teachers.

Learning³ a language by immersion means a student is placed in an environment where only the target language is spoken.

The STARTALK program is designed to help more Americans learn languages like Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Persian, and Russian. Those languages are considered “critical need foreign languages” by the U.S. government.

President George W. Bush launched⁴ the program as part of a program known as the National Security⁵ Language Initiative⁶ in 2006.

This summer, VOA visited a Russian language class within STARTALK. Students and teachers attended classes at a school in Virginia. The teachers attended classes for two weeks, and the students for four.

In the classes, the American teachers and students only speak Russian. They also choose Russian names.

One student, 19-year-old Joseph Doran, chose the name Joseph Timofeyevich. He has spent some time living in Russia. When he was there, he says he ate borscht, the well-known Russian soup made from beets⁷, seven times a week.

"I love Russian culture, language. I love reading Russian classical literature," Doran said. "It is a very interesting language. Russian people are very nice. I love the opportunities that open to me because I know Russian.”

Charles Byrd is a professor of Russian at the University of Georgia. He was taking classes for two weeks in Virginia. He said he grew up thinking Russia must have been an interesting place. He had heard it called an “Evil Empire” when he was young.

Byrd’s parents were American diplomats⁸. They always wanted to visit Russia, but they were not allowed to go.

The teachers who attend STARTALK each summer meet other teachers and improve their language skills. For the students, they can get better in a short period of time. If the students keep improving, they can point to the time they spent learning Russian one summer as an important first step towards future careers.

Betsy Sandstrom is a program director at STARTALK. She said there are a lot of good reasons for students to want to learn Russian.

"One person wants to become a Russian language teacher, another wants to be a politician," she said. "Knowledge of any foreign language is needed. And Russia is the largest country in the world."

Words in This Story

initiative – n. a plan or program that is intended to solve a problem

immersion – n. a method of learning a foreign language by being taught entirely⁹ in that language

classical – adj. of a kind that has been respected for a long time

empire – n. a group of countries or regions that are controlled by one ruler or one government

1 intensive   

adj.加强的，密集的；精工细作的，集约的

参考例句：

• I'll make an intensive study of a subject.我将集中学一门课程。
• There we received several weeks of intensive training.在那里我们受了几星期的集中训练.

2 immersion   

n.沉浸；专心

参考例句：

• The dirt on the bottom of the bath didn't encourage total immersion.浴缸底有污垢，不宜全身浸泡于其中。
• The wood had become swollen from prolonged immersion.因长时间浸泡，木头发胀了。

3 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

4 launched   

v.发射( launch的过去式和过去分词 )；[计算机]开始（应用程序）；发动；开展（活动、计划等）

参考例句：

• He launched a bitter diatribe against the younger generation. 他对年轻一代发起了猛烈的抨击。
• The product was launched amid much fanfare worldwide. 这个产品在世界各地隆重推出。

5 security   

n.安全，安全感；防护措施；保证(金)，抵押(品)；债券，证券

参考例句：

• A security guard brought him down with a flying tackle.一名保安人员飞身把他抱倒。
• There was tight security at the airport when the President's plane landed.总统的专机降落时，机场的保安措施很严密。

6 initiative   

n.主动性，首创精神，主动权（的行动），倡议

参考例句：

• He went to see the headmaster on his own initiative.他主动去看望校长。
• His employer had described him as lacking in initiative and drive.雇主说他缺乏进取心和干劲。

7 beets   

甜菜( beet的名词复数 )； 甜菜根； （因愤怒、难堪或觉得热而）脸红

参考例句：

• Beets are Hank's favorite vegetable. 甜菜根是汉克最爱吃的蔬菜。
• In this enlargement, barley, alfalfa, and sugar beets can be differentiated. 在这张放大的照片上，大麦，苜蓿和甜菜都能被区分开。

8 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。