Making Meaning
Whether in class or farther afield—be it rural Patagonia researching Mapuche medicine or North Bennington, Vermont, teaching elementary school children their first foreign language—Bennington students learn a language because they are working in it.
![Hut in rural Patagonia](/sites/default/files/styles/carousel_1400x850/public/sources/view-gallery/LANG_Morrison-Patagonia_1400x850.jpg.webp?itok=UR0dTBTG)
![Student teaching French to elementary school children](/sites/default/files/styles/carousel_1400x850/public/sources/view-gallery/LANG_NBVS-class_1400x850.jpg.webp?itok=N5HW6S1A)
Bennington language students teach French, Spanish, and Chinese to elementary school children in neighboring North Bennington
![French class](/sites/default/files/styles/carousel_1400x850/public/sources/view-gallery/LANG_Shapiro-class_1400x850.jpg.webp?itok=xVHEPiv_)
At all levels of instruction, small seminars allow students to challenge preconceived notions, compare and defend ideas, and develop linguistic proficiency
![Japanese class](/sites/default/files/styles/carousel_1400x850/public/sources/view-gallery/LANG_Yoshida-class_1400x850.jpg.webp?itok=z_u6o5vO)
Faculty curate materials to stimulate intellectual discovery and teach students to read and listen critically to various types of texts
![Japanese class](/sites/default/files/styles/carousel_1400x850/public/sources/view-gallery/LANG_Yoshida-class2_1400x850.jpg.webp?itok=IPxp-hM9)
Because content drives course design, courses are of interest to native speakers as well as those learning the language
![Chinese faculty member talking with prospective students](/sites/default/files/styles/carousel_1400x850/public/sources/view-gallery/LANG_Lin-class_Mahler_1400x850.jpg.webp?itok=2pRe61N1)
From day one, reading and writing, listening and speaking are all directed towards discussing complex cultural ideas