Burkina Faso: Reading West Africa Program
The Santa Clara University Fall Semester Study Abroad/Immersion in Burkina Faso is a study abroad program for students with at least one year of university-level French or equivalent interested in combining academic work on the literature and development challenges of West Africa with immersion and community-based learning experiences in public libraries in small towns and villages in rural areas. Students spend the first six weeks of the program in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, the second six weeks in a rural village in southwestern Burkina Faso, a week in Dogon country, on the Burkina-Mali border, and a final two weeks back in Ouagadougou.
Term:
- Fall Only. Now accepting applications for Fall 2010
Program Highlights:
- Read novels of French West Africa
- Intern in a village community library helping children read
- Create and publish two books of photographs about village life in Burkina Faso
- Engage with development challenges of Burkina Faso, one of world's poorest countries
- Immerse yourself in French for four months
- Visit the famous Dogon cliff homes in Mali
Academic Overview
The program offers five courses (
click here for course descriptions):
Literature of Francophone Africa and French in Francophone Africa take advantage of the Francophone setting and deepen students’ understanding and abilities in the French language.The first course is an intensive reading of novels of West Africa.The second course is intermediate or advanced French, tailored to the level of the student. Students have joint sessions to cover grammar, and individual sessions with tutors (university students or graduates, for conversational and reading tutorials).These two intensive courses take place during September and early October in Ouagadougou. For the remainder of the semester students maintain a journal in French, writing down observations and vocabulary learned in a village setting, and reflecting on novels that will be read and discussed with village students and teachers.
Development Economics: West Africa introduces students to urgent questions of development, understood as poverty alleviation and sustainable economic growth, using examples drawn from West Africa.Emphasis will be placed on the critical study of the role of public organizations in civic life in terms of fostering a political culture (rule of law, transparency, and concern for social inclusion) that promotes development.Burkina Faso has an active civil society, and the course will include conversations with activists in non-governmental organizations (NGOs), policy makers of Burkina Faso, multinational corporations, the World Bank, entrepreneurs, economic specialists in the U.S. embassy, and visits to projects and private sector production facilities. The course includes an in-depth discussion of local rural institutions that prepares students for and complements the community-based learning course.
Community-Based Learning in Village Libraries and Photography in West Africa develop students’ capacities for using photography in civic and community engagement. Students learn the basics of photography and then live in a village for six weeks during which time they conceptualize and produce two quality books for use in local village libraries.Students learn how to compose an aesthetically satisfactory photograph (e.g. portraits, landscapes, and casuals), how to use photo-editing software to enhance reproduction quality, how to use Adobe Indesign to create a book, and how to take an electronic book file to a publisher for a small print run. The books are then distributed to local public libraries. The six weeks immersion and volunteer work in small public libraries fosters in students an empathetic solidarity with the difficult lives of villagers in Burkina Faso, one of the poorest countries of the world.The course permits achievement of one of Santa Clara University’s important goals in its new Core Curriculum: “to interact appropriately, sensitively, and self-critically with people in the communities in which they work and to appreciate the formal and informal knowledge, wisdom, and skills that individuals in these communities possess.”
Accommodations
In Ouagadougou, students stay in student houses with other students in the program, in the neighborhood of Zogona. Furnishings are basic. Each house has a kitchen and students can cook their own meals if they choose. Each house has a day and night watchman, and a cleaning person. Lunch and dinner are prepared by a local cook and served as group meals, and will include a variety of typical local Burkinabè cuisine (sauce with rice or cous-cous, spaghetti, salad, and grilled meats) that most foreigners find delicious. In the villages, students will stay in student houses with other students in the program, with private latrine and bucket-shower area. Villages do not have electricity or running water; conditions are very rudimentary. Students have breakfast (tea or coffee and bread), lunch and dinner prepared by a local village cook in the student house. Villages for these home stays are located in a 30-kilometer radius, and students are visited every day by a staff member to make sure lodging and food are adequate. Most villages have cell phone access, and students have cell phones, permitting regular contact to family in the United States.
Excursions
On two occasions, students travel to the neighboring town of Bobo-Dioulasso for long weekends to explore the culture and history of the town, and have further instruction in photography techniques.
Around November 21, students return to
Ouagadougou for a couple of rest days, and then depart for a six-day trip to Dogon Country.
A traveler describes the area (
http://blogs.bootsnall.com/NickWendy/dogon-country.html):
Dogon Country has probably been the highlight of West Africa so far. We met a bunch of cool travelers in Djenne and were lucky enough to bump into most of them again in Bandiagarra for our three-night trek into Dogon Country.…
We set out from Bandiagarra to walk to the escarpment that is so readily associated with the Dogon people and their villages. The escarpment is a 150 kilometre cliff that seems to rise from nowhere, and all the villages of the traditional Dogon people are either at the base of it or on top of it. We spent three days walking alongside the base of the escarpment, visiting some of the villages along the way. In all we walked about 70km in three days which was a pretty decent effort, I thought. The scenery and the architecture of the villages were the highlights. The escarpment is especially magical at dawn when first light hits it, and this is the best time to be in a village as well. The Dogon houses are small, conical dwellings with thatched pyramidal roofs, but the best architecture in the villages are the buildings of the Tellem people, who lived in the area before the Dogon. They built clay houses and granary towers further up the escarpment than the Dogon in places that seem utterly inaccessible. The Dogon, apparently, thought the Tellem knew how to fly and that’s how they were able to build their houses.
Cost
Students pay the regular tuition for Santa Clara University, which is approximately $12,000 and the Housing & Program Fee of $3,800 for the quarter (exact amounts will be determined in March, 2010 and published on http://www.scu.edu/studyabroad/fees). This cost will cover food, transport and lodging during the time in Burkina Faso, but not incidental expenses (a cell phone will be provided to each student, but students have to purchase calling cards to make outgoing calls).Santa Clara University will also charge a fee (around $2,000) to provide round-trip tickets on an established air carrier, from the continental United States to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Students wishing to make separate travel arrangements must do so before the deadline for making the initial payment deposit. Students are responsible for their visas, medical vaccinations, books and supplies, and incidentals etc.These expenses typically are around $1,500.
Course Offerings
Each of the courses offered is classified as upper-division coursework, with credit issued through Santa Clara University. Each class is 5 quarter units for SCU students. Students must enroll in all five courses during a semester with the Burkina Faso program, for a total of 25 quarter units. Students from other universities will be awarded credit according to their institution’s procedures. Course numbers are preliminary and subject to change. French majors or minors will earn 10 quarter units of course credit. African Studies minors will have many of the requirements for the minor satisfied by the program.
FREN 111BF: Literature of Francophone Africa
Instructor: Dr. Alain Sissao, INSS, Ouagadougou
Language of instruction: French
Prerequisite: Two years of French at University level with grade-point average of 3.0 or higher, or equivalent.
A comparative exploration of literary themes developed by men and women in the West African tradition, with special emphasis on changes in form, character, and myth over time. Includes writings by Amadou Hampate Ba (L’étrange destin de Wangrin), Sembene Ousmane (Les bouts de bois de Dieu), Cheik Hamidou Kane (L’aventure ambigue), Nazi Boni (Crépuscule des temps anciens) and others. Students are expected to read and discuss five novels during the first session in Ouagadougou, and then three novels during the second session in the villages, as well as short stories, literary criticism, and films. (Fulfills the Cultures & Ideas 3 requirements)
ECON 129BF: Development Economics in West Africa
Instructors:
Dr. Michael Kevane, Dept. of Economics, Santa Clara University
Dr. Leslie Gray, Institute of Environmental Studies, Santa Clara University
Language of instruction: English & French
Introduction to major issues in development economics relevant to West Africa, from an interdisciplinary perspective. Includes discussion of geography of the region, measuring human development and poverty, policy issues regarding education, microfinance, trade, agricultural investment, etc., and political economy. Emphasis on rural political economy and role of civic organizations (women’s associations, credit groups) in promoting economic development. Several guest speakers from Burkina Faso. Field visits to development projects and organizations. (Fulfills the Social Science Requirement).
ARTS 157BF: Digital Photography
Instructor: Dr. David Pace, Dept. of Fine Arts, Santa Clara University
Language of instruction: English
Introduction to the fundamentals of creativity and craft in digital photography, for B/W and color. Includes shooting and printing assignments, as well as readings and discussion of photography as it relates to African settings. The final project for the course is creating two books of photographs with text appropriate for newly literate adults or young readers in Burkina Faso. (Fulfills the Fine Arts requirement in new Core Curriculum)
INTL 139BF: Community-based Learning in Village Libraries
Instructors:
Dr. Michael Kevane, Dept. of Economics, Santa Clara University
Dr. Leslie Gray, Institute of Environmental Studies, Santa Clara University
Language of instruction: English & French
The second six weeks of the semester are spent living in a rural community. During the village stay, students will carry out two projects: developing and implementing reading programs in small community libraries, and working with rural communities to conceive and produce several “micro-books” designed to foster increased interest in reading. This service-learning or “praxis” activity will be accompanied by directed reflection, readings, and feedback on writing (journals and reflection writing) and will qualify the student for academic credit.The “micro-books” component will also be the project for the Photography course. (Fulfills the Civic Engagement course requirement and the Experiential Learning component of the new Core Curriculum)
FREN 107BF: French in Francophone Africa
Instructor: TBA
Language of instruction: French
Prerequisite: Two years of French at University level with grade-point average of 3.0 or higher, or equivalent.
Appreciation of French and Francophone culture through readings and discussion. The class will involve group sessions and sub-group and individual sessions. For intermediate students, a continuation of the review of the fundamentals of spoken and written French. For more advanced students, intensive work in French conversation and composition, focusing on everyday situations. Both levels will emphasize reading local Burkinabè newspapers and meeting with local journalists, and include weekly events at the French Cultural Center in Ouagadougou. In the second session in villages, students will maintain journals in French that will be graded.
Partner
All in-country activities, transportation, meals, lodging and other logistics of the study abroad/immersion will be organized by Friends of African Village Libraries (FAVL), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that operates five village libraries in Burkina Faso and employs a resident staff in Ouagadougou. FAVL has considerable experience hosting student volunteers.
Fall 2010 - Tentative Schedule
Arrival: September 1, 2010
Thanksgiving Break: Faculty & students take a 6-day excursion to Dogon country
Departure: December 10, 2010
Students remain in
Ouagadougou, with frequent field trips, from September 1 to October 10. After a one week orientation program, students have 25 hours of instruction in each of the two French-based courses (i.e. 5 hours per week for each course). Students also have an intensive training in digital photography techniques during this period, 20 hours total, beginning around Sept. 22. Students take a workshop to learn how to use Adobe Indesign. Finally, the development economics course meets for 20 hours of contact time.
October 10, students relocate to a village setting for six weeks.
During the time in the village, students continue to work on their development studies materials and begin work on their community engagement coursework, through experiential learning, by volunteering in community libraries for ten hours each week.
The typical internship involves conducting story hours and other activities for schoolchildren, organizing reading groups for secondary school students, assisting the librarian with accounting, report-writing and grant-writing, and other activities of a village library.
Students also produce two books of photographs.
One of the books must be related to the theme of civic engagement. For example, a student might create a book of photographs of women leaders in rural Burkina Faso, with accompanying text explaining their activities and development outlook, in French text simple enough for newly literate readers (secondary school students and adult learners), and translated into Dioula, the local lingua franca.
(Students work with local teachers, students and librarians to draft the text and translate into Dioula.)
Students reflect on their activities through structured writing assignments and discussions.
There will be numerous opportunities while in the villages to learn from locals.
Organized visits will include village and town mayors, school directors and teachers, nurse practitioners in village clinics, leaders of cotton and other farming associations, leaders of women’s groups, and religious and other community leaders.
Students will also have many opportunities to interact with schoolchildren and villagers.
All students will meet once a week in a central location for a day of reflection, debriefing, brief lectures or meetings with regional officials, and opportunity to work on computers editing photographs and receiving feedback on their projects. In particular, the photography course instructor reviews photographs and progress towards designing the book.
Around
November 29, students return to Ouagadougou for production sessions that will result in printing of the books.
Short course sessions will be held, and student will have time to write final papers for their classes and sit for final exams.
The program will officially end on December 10, leaving students with time for further travel (perhaps in Europe) before returning home.
More Information
For more information, please contact Professor Michael Kevane (mkevane@scu.edu), Chair, Department of Economics and Director of the SCU Burkina Faso - Reading West Africa Program.
Ready to Apply?
SCU Students: Click here for the "How to Apply: 4-Step Procedure" checklist.Non-SCU Students: Click here for the SCU Burkina Faso Application Form. Applications are reviewed on a rolling admission basis until the program is filled.
SCU Burkina Faso Accepted Students!
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