PetrSU student – participant of the Summer School of Polish Language, Literature and Culture

From 1 to 22 August, Summer Distance Courses were held, organized by the School of Polish Language and Culture (Szkola Języka i Kultury Polskiej), with financial support from the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange NAWA. The School of Polish Language and Culture is a division of the Silesian University in Katowice (Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach), which has been a partner of Petrozavodsk State University since 2017.
3rd year student of the direction “Applied Philology” of the Institute of Philology of PetrSU Maria Galakhova took part in the courses as a NAWA scholar:

Classes were held remotely and, what is important, with a native speaker. I was very interested in the Polish language and culture. At the end of the school year, our teacher, Mrs Justyna Pilak, offered to take a summer Polish language course. Of course, I agreed.

The summer school began with a proficiency test that divided over 250 students from 46 countries into language proficiency groups. The course covered all continents, so the course time was divided into three time zones.

“Based on the test results, I was assigned to a group with a B1 level. Every day there were two one and a half hours of practical language lessons. In my group there were guys from Ukraine, Egypt, Turkey, Croatia, Germany, Slovakia. Since the teachers paid great attention to the development of speech, we not only improved the skills of speaking a foreign language, but also learned about the culture of other countries.

In addition, the organizers of the course surprised with a varied program: there were not only lectures on the history of Poland, Polish literature and culture, but also online excursions, master classes, language games, and interest clubs. Also, within the framework of the Summer School, a dictation in Polish (Sprawdzian z polskiego) was held, in which everyone could take part.

One of the main events of the Summer School was the Meeting of Cultures and Traditions (Spotkanie Kultur i Tradycji). Representatives of different countries needed to prepare a short speech: to tell about their country, its traditions and culture.

For me, the Summer School of Polish Language, Literature and Culture was a great discovery of something new, first of all, in myself. This course not only strengthened my motivation to learn the language, but also expanded my horizons, opened up the world of other traditions and cultures,

– said Maria.

The result of the course was a written test and an oral exam. All participants who successfully passed the certification received certificates.