Sacramento State students will have the opportunity this summer to learn about indigenous cultures, while studying Spanish through a travel study to Oaxaca, Mexico, hosted by the College of Continuing Education.

 

Professor of bilingual, multicultural and international education Peter Baird coordinated the Puentes 2014: Oaxaca Travel Study trip. For the past five years, the trip was only open to professors, but this year will bethe first time it is open to students and the public.  

 

“The main purpose of the trip is to provide an emerging experience for people through a language, culture and social science component,” Baird said.

 

This year, Oaxaca was chosen as the destination for four reasons: its rich culture and traditions, great tourist attractions and archeology, its very active social movement and because of the high migration rate between Oaxaca and California.

 

According to the History Channel’s website, Oaxaca has 16 indigenous groups and every group has hundreds of subgroups with unique linguistic and social traditions dated back to the 6th century B.C.

 

For the two-week trip, students will stay with a host family who will provide meals. On weekdays, participants will be attending Spanish classes and seminars on indigenous languages, cultures, health, education, social movements and migration.

 

Participants will also be taking part in a variety of cultural events like dancing and field trips to places in Oaxaca such as Monte Alban, one of the most well- studied archeological sites in the Americas. It was the capital of the Zapotec indigenous group from 500 BC to AD 700.

 

Baird said experiencing a culture first-hand, is more powerful than learning about it in a classroom setting.

 

“Reading about a culture and language is really important, however, we know experiencing teaches us the most and it can be transformative,” Baird said.

 

According to the Institute for the International Education of Students, students who study abroad have been found to gain long-term benefits in personal growth and intercultural development. They have also gained key perspectives on global issues, advanced in language skills and formed valuable connections that have later helped in their careers.

 

Study Abroad Coordinator Janis Silvers said study travel helps students gain better proficiency in another language.

 

“If you are studying Spanish in the United States, you are able to practice in class, but once you walk out, you need to go back to speaking English,” Silvers said. “But if you are in a country like Mexico, you get to speak the language in class and out of class. This allows students to pick up the language faster.”

 

Sac State alumnus and Outreach Counselor for CAMP Rafael Ordaz said he had a great experience going to Oaxaca in the summer of 2010.

 

“I went while I was receiving my teaching credentials because I wanted to receive that urban rural context of education,” Ordaz said. “I learned how privileged educators here are and how students feel when they leave their native country to study in the U.S.”

 

Ordaz said even though he is Mexican, he learned a lot from attending classes offered in the program because the Mexican culture in the U.S. is watered down.

 

“Sometimes when I would speak to natives from Oaxaca, they would not understand what I was trying to say, and I thought I was saying it correctly because that is how I speak with my Americanized family,” Ordaz said.

 

The estimate cost of the trip is $2,600, not including transportation.

 

Baird said there is no program that helps students pay for the trip, but there have been people in the past who have worked with the community to raise money.

 

For more information there will be a meeting on March 28th in Napa Hall at 5 pm.