In the literature on intercultural competence, such competence, or set of competencies, is desirable precisely because a globalized world needs world citizens who are at home everywhere and can deal effectively with alterity -- presumably in order to be agents of positive change. To remain relevant, we as teachers in German Studies need…

Universities across the country are experiencing a decline in the number of undergraduates choosing to major in the humanities in general, and similar trends have been observed specifically in the study of foreign languages (FLs), cultures, and literatures. The educational and social psychological literature has explored uptake, or a student's…

This paper reports on a needs analysis underlying a proposed business English reading course using a problem-based learning approach designed to enhance English reading abilities of Thai undergraduate students. As part of a work in progress, the needs analysis survey was done prior to the course design with the major stakeholders in business and…

Lack of support for language and literature study in higher education reflects the larger attitudes of American culture: that learning for its own sake has little value. This provincialism is outmoded, dangerous, and intellectually indefensible, and must be eliminated in order to redefine language and literature studies. (MSE)