Introduction: Who Am I, Where Am I Going, and Why?
Hey, y’all! Thanks for stopping by to read about my study abroad adventures. My name is Lisa Camp and I am a staff member at USC. I work for USC Connect as an Advisor for Graduation with Leadership Distinction (GLD) and this summer I’m studying abroad in Accra, Ghana, for three weeks! I’m super stoked about the opportunity, as I wasn’t able to study abroad when I was an undergraduate and this particular opportunity was afforded to me by the University Studies Abroad Consortium (USAC) and their generous Faculty International Development Award (FIDA)!
USAC’s FIDA allows faculty and staff to embark on a full study abroad experience by participating as a student in one of USAC’s summer programs. My application for the FIDA focused on my role as an Advisor for GLD, specifically my work with students considering studying abroad, who have returned from study abroad, and with international students who are currently studying abroad at the University of South Carolina. In my application, I selected four potential summer sessions/locations, and ranked them (first choice to fourth choice). Fortunately, USAC not only awarded me the opportunity, but they also gave me the opportunity to study abroad via my first choice—Ghana!
To provide a little background on why I wanted to study abroad in Ghana, I should start with my own academic journey. I majored in English literature as an undergraduate and completed my Master of Arts in English literature at UofSC this past May (May 2018). I’m a medievalist by training, which means that I studied a lot of older English texts—Old English (also known as Anglo-Saxon) and Middle English poetry and prose (think Beowulf-era and Chaucer)—and their cultural contexts. One of the aspects of studying medieval literature that a lot of people I talk to don’t realize is that it’s the study of literature in what would be considered “foreign” languages. While Old and Middle English are technically dialects of English, they are so far removed from the English we speak today that studying them in their original versions (that is, not in translation) requires exercising many of the skills and concepts for learning other foreign languages (I did a lot of translating in my Master’s thesis, and learning Russian at the same time as Old English was particularly helpful because they’re both grammatically gendered languages which decline in similar ways). My interest in studying abroad in Ghana and its relation to my role with USC Connect are connected to the processes, concepts, and skills I learned as a student of medieval literature, which I hope will become more evident as this blog progresses.
As an Advisor for GLD with USC Connect, I advise students who will likely study abroad (in which case I’m often encouraging them to visit the Study Abroad Office on campus to help them learn more about their options for studying abroad—including funding, programs relevant for their majors, and safe locations), students who have studied abroad, and international students who are currently “studying abroad” in the US by nature of their studies at UofSC. These last two groups are the ones that have the most impact on my interest in studying abroad in Ghana for two reasons: (1) I have never studied abroad before (!!!) and would like a better understanding of helping students reflect on their experiences abroad (which happens most often in students’ GLD ePortfolios); and (2) I would like to better understand the experiences of international students who speak English (very well!) but speak a different “dialect” than the “standard” English we often use in academic writing and presenting practices.
Since Ghana’s official language is technically English (surrounded by many other languages and dialects) I intend to pay close attention to my experience speaking the English I grew up with, the English I’m trained in, and how those versions of English differ from the lingua franca of Ghanaian daily life. This particular interest in the differences in English dialects isn’t a simple matter of curiosity or to showcase that I can articulate how they’re different; rather, I’m interested in how language, culture, and identity are connected and how I can better advise students in reflecting on their experiences in ways that are culturally relevant and which do not risk the student’s identity for the sake of dialectic “correctness.” Being attuned to the student’s identity and its relation to their linguistic expression is particularly important for helping them articulate experiences which may not “translate” so well into “standard” academic English. Embarking on this study abroad experience myself is the first step in changing the way I think about helping students reflect on their experiences and how their linguistic cultures play a central role in the reflection process.
While I’m in Ghana I’ll be studying at the University of Ghana in Accra, the nation’s capital. I’ll be taking classes in African literature and African dance, and I’m extremely excited immerse myself in these two major types of cultural expression. If you’d like to read along with me, I’ll be listening to audiobook versions of Taiye Selasi’s Ghana Must Go and Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing during my travels, and Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart for my African literature class. I’ll try to keep you updated on the reading list for class and will definitely be reflecting on my learning from my literature and dance classes and how they help me understand my experience in Ghana!
More on my travel prep and (loose) expectations for the trip in my next post!
