Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Hamed, Hamed, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Hamed and his family are from Afghanistan where he worked as a diplomat and interpreter for the U.S. Army after having studied international relations and diplomacy. As the situation with the Taliban worsened it became too dangerous for Hamed and his family to stay in Afghanistan. They began the difficult journey with the help of smugglers, first to Iran, then Turkey, and then to Greece in a dangerous, overfilled boat.

Hamed explains the despair and frustration faced by many refugees. They feel as though very little is actually done for refugees once they’re admitted, and explains they need more assistance. …

Bahram & Camila, Bahram, Camila, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Bahram tells the story of the Afghanistan's 1992 government collapse and subsequent civil wars that destroyed the city of Kabul. "There was war in every alley, every house, every area and every village. 60,000 people were killed." Their family emigrated to Pakistan and after living there for some time, some relatives of a friend from their village travelled to Pakistan and required lodging so they stayed with Bahram's family. In some developing and under-developed countries, the custom of arranged marriage to child and infant daughters is practiced. These house guests demanded their one-year-old daughter be given in marriage to a …

Harry Potter And The Analysis Of A Hogwarts Education, Kayla M. Nelson

Student Works

A Hogwarts education is one that is coveted by many young (and old) people. The idea of a magical school is tantalizing. However, the magic only goes so far. This article exposes the flaws of a Hogwarts education.

Salman, Salman, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Salman and his family are from Afghanistan, where he worked as a doctor. He worked for fifteen years for a mining institute, and before that he worked in various hospitals with Americans and Germans for another combined 15 years. The family ran into problems with the Taliban, who threatened violence if he didn’t close his drugstore. During that same time, his son witnessed a suicide bombing at his school. Their daughter was forced to abandon her education when the Taliban poisoned the water at her school. They fled in attempts to live a normal life again and escape the threats …

Faroosh And Elina, Faroosh, Elina, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Faroosh was a cameraman for a private television program in Afghanistan working on a documentary about the Taliban. When he and his crew were discovered, the Taliban attacked them and he and his wife fled to Turkey, walking 12 hours to get there. Upon arrival the police arrested and harassed them. Turkey was not a safe place. After several suicide bombings in the area, they decided to move on to Greece, where they are in a refugee camp without any progress in their situation. They have no money to move forward and no ability to work and the economic situation …

Fawad And Zakeela, Fawad, Zakeela, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Fawad and his wife, Zakeela, have three children. Zakeela was a beautician, and Fawad was a singer in the Baghlan district in Afghanistan. The music he produced was not in accordance with the strict restrictions of the Taliban. They threatened his life and assaulted him many times, so he decided to leave with his family to Kabul. Fawad’s day job was as an FM radio producer; at night, he moonlighted as a singer and musician. He produced music for ceremonies and weddings, often performing for the women’s part, which the Taliban did not accept. Eventually, his life was again threatened, …

Aarash, Aarash, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

As an anti-corruption journalist in Afghanistan, Aarash’s family’s life was threatened by warlords. His car was shot at, their guesthouse was bombed, and later when they were threatened at gunpoint, they tried to make a new life in India. But in India, they discovered difficulties in obtaining permanent visas so they had return to Kabul where they hid at a friend’s house for 20 days while obtaining documentation to flee to Turkey. Once in Turkey, they learned that Afghan registries had been closed since 2010. They determined that they needed to either apply for asylum in Turkey or leave for …

Irrigating Deserts With Just Sentiments: C.S. Lewis On Education, Jennifer L. King, Dr. O. Glade Hunsaker

Journal of Undergraduate Research

“We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst” (C.S. Lewis, The Abolition of Man, p. 37).

In his The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis lays out the foundations of his philosophy on education. While many of Lewis’s writings on Christianity are well read and accepted by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, his writings on education are not as often explored both in and out of the Church, probably because they are generally less accessible to the …

Economics And Education Vs. Griots: Threats To Traditional Performers In The Senegalese Arts, Joseph B. Hill, Dr. Michael D. Phillips

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In much of West Africa, the griot is the central figure in the performing arts. Traditionally, only those born into the griot caste perform publicly in any capacity, be it in music, dance, historical recitation, public speaking, or jesting. Although other castes look down on such work, griots embrace it and carefully guard their monopoly. Immune to most social sanctions, griots speak good and bad with impunity, and nobles pay dearly to ensure that griots say only good (1).

Employment And Education Surveys With The African Members Of The Lds Church In Paris, Rachel Newton, Dr. Michael Bush

Journal of Undergraduate Research

As the world becomes more and more international, residents of third-world countries are immigrating en masse to more developed countries, where they see a promise of a better life — a higher standard of living and acceptance into the world community, from which they feel excluded in their own countries. In France, a large majority of these immigrants are African; the French colonized twenty-one present countries on the African continent and taught the natives their language and many of their customs, so France seems the natural place for these former colonies to look to as their “land of opportunity.” This …

Learning Through Service: Research On Employment And Education With The Lds Institute In Paris, Brendon K. Barton, Dr. Michael Bush

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Recent interactions between BYU faculty and leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Paris, including the stake presidencies and the Institute, have uncovered several areas of concern for French members of the Church. Among these concerns is that of employment and education for young adult members. In line with President Bateman’s vision of Brigham Young University, in its mission “to take the full spectrum of light across the world,” I researched these concerns through administering surveys, personal research, and interviewing members in Paris (1). With the help of Rachel Newton, I was able to …

The Correlation Between Religiosity And Education In Mexico, Mark Williams, Janel Williams, Dr. Keith Wilson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

A common concern for religious leaders for centuries has been the effect of education on religious devotion. During medieval times in Europe, leaders of the Catholic Church found that secular education was not compatible with church doctrines, and they strongly discouraged church members from studying works outside of the canonized church literature. The worries of the Catholic Church are still a reality today. Several modern-day studies, including a 1982 study done by Princeton University among Americans of several different religions, have found a negative correlation between education level and religious devotion: as education level increased among adults, religious devotion and …

Career, Education, Home & Family: Decision-Making Among Lds Women, Jennifer M. Vigil, Dr. Bonnie Ballif-Spanvill

Journal of Undergraduate Research

As women are given more and more options about the course of their lives, the choices become more complicated. When a woman’s level of religiosity becomes a factor, the decision-making process becomes even more complex. This paper will show how young women who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) make their decisions. It will look at their commitment to a single role, how they plan to follow in their mothers’ footsteps, the knowledge and certainty women feel about the decisions they make, how involved they are in the decision-making process, and the influence of …

Certification And Signaling: The Importance Of Markets And What Makes Them Work, J Michael Pinegar

BYU Studies Quarterly

J. Michael Pinegar examines financial and labor markets in terms of what makes them work efficiently. Information asymmetry between buyers and sellers can result in market failure. Two common ways to reduce information asymmetry are certification and signaling. Certification refers to a reputable third party, who affirms the quality of a product. Signaling refers to costs the seller incurs to convey the quality of the product to potential buyers. The signal might be something like a warranty. Both of these mechanisms facilitate market functioning. Pinegar gave this presentation as the BYU 2013 Maeser Distinguished Faculty Lecture.

Natural History Museums Of Early Utah Settlement, Leslie Evens

Library Research Grants

No abstract provided.

My Vocation As A Scholar: An Idea Of The University, John R. Rosenberg

BYU Studies Quarterly

This lecture was given on March 21, 2013, as part of the Brigham Young University Faculty Center's "My Journey as a Scholar of Faith" series. John R. Rosenberg, dean of the College of Humanities at BYU, uses architectural features of the Joseph F. Smith Building (JFSB), home of his college, to illustrate certain aspects of scholarship and faith. The arches surrounding the courtyard represent a beautiful, efficient management of tension and compression and remind us that a university is a collection of individuals, admired at times for their individual graces, but relied upon to sustain a common project. "The glory …

“Languages Of The Peoples Of Kazakhstan And Their Interaction” By Bakhytzhan Khassanov, And “Languages Of The Peoples Of Kazakhstan” By Eleonora Suleimenova, Nursulu Shaimerdenova, Dana Akanova, Aidyn Aldaberdikyzy

Russian Language Journal

A rich vein of articles and books has recently addressed some critical issues in the field of sociolinguistics in Kazakhstan, both in terms of theoretical perspectives and of their implications in the context of education and policy. A wide range of theoretical and practical questions of Kazakhstani sociolinguistics are addressed, including:

• Defining de jure and de facto status of languages;

• Content and stages of status and corpus language planning;

• Ethnic and linguistic identification of individuals, ethnic groups and the population altogether;

• Ethnic and linguistic consciousness and self-consciousness;

• Possibility and prevention of language conflicts;

• Defining …

Toward A Theory Of Interdisciplinarity: An Example Of Conceptual Integration/Blending In Teaching And Learning In Russian And East European Language-Based Area Studies, Anna Pleshakova, Kathleen M. Quinlan

Russian Language Journal

Most of problems in everyday and professional life are interdisciplinary, though most of our academic scholarship is contained within disciplines. To understand and solve such interdisciplinary problems, we must cross disciplinary boundaries. Yet, “the need to identify a method or/and logic of interdisciplinarity has, however, proven to be much easier to proclaim than to meet.”

Young People’S Schools And Højskoler In The United States, J. Christian Bay

The Bridge

It can be said that an organized effort to preserve Danish language and culture has existed here in America since the beginning of the seventies. The immigrants considered it essential that they develop plans to strengthen and design general education for young adults. Among the immigrants who immediately joined the Church right from the beginning, there were few academics. However, because many knew about the højskole concept in Denmark, this concept became the foundation for their church-sheltered schools.

Comparing Heritage And Non-Heritage Learning Outcomes And Target-Language Utilization In The Overseas Immersion Context: A Preliminary Study Of The Russian Flagship, Dan E. Davidson, Maria D. Lekic

Russian Language Journal

The heritage learner within U.S. foreign language education has received increasing attention over the past two decades, as university programs with substantial numbers of heritage students have developed improved diagnostic and curricular offerings for addressing the particular needs of those whose learning of their native language was incomplete or interrupted due to immigration to the U.S. (Valdés, 2000; Kagan & Dillon, 2004). While the heritage learner within the domestic language learning context is relatively well represented in the literature, relatively little research has been devoted to the acquisition experiences of heritage learners engaged in overseas immersion study (re-learning) of their …

Educating Mexico In Emilio Fernández's Río Escondido And Rosario Castellanos's Balún Canán, David Scott Dalton

Theses and Dissertations

Following the bloody Revolution of 1910-1917, Mexican leaders took a great interest in rebuilding their devastated, war-torn country. In an attempt to further national unity, the post-Revolutionary regime sought to construct a unified, national identity. Many officials, such as José Vasconcelos, Mexico's first Secretario de Educación, viewed education as one of the keys to redeeming the nation. These government officials, empowered by their ideals and their sense of civic duty, worked to extend educational benefits to even the most overlooked segments of Mexican society. This thesis will examine two fictional texts that consider these efforts to transform and unify …

"Thy Mind, O Man, Must Stretch", John W. Welch

BYU Studies Quarterly

John W. Welch, the recipient of the 2010-2011 Karl G. Maeser Distinguished Faculty Lecturer Award, gave this speech on May 17, 2011, at Brigham Young University. He spoke about the BYU Mission Statement as a guide for infusing an intellectual life with perspective and purpose: students should learn the gospel of Jesus Christ, learn broadly to be able to communicate, learn deeply in one's chosen field, and serve in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Welch placed emphasis on hard work and keeping an open mind while searching for truth. Mormonism thrives, he said, because it welcomes the …

Writing About Literature In The Digital Age, Derrick Clements, Gideon Burton, Taylor Gilbert, Matthew Harrison

Student Works

Writing about Literature in the Digital Age is a collaborative effort by students at Brigham Young University who are pushing boundaries of traditional literary study to explore the benefits of digital tools in academic writing. This eBook is a case study of how electronic text formats and blogging can be effectively used to explore literary works, develop one's thinking publicly, and research socially. Students used literary works to read the emerging digital environment while simultaneously using new media to connect them with authentic issues and audiences beyond the classroom. As literacy and literature continue their rapid evolution, accounts like these …

The Educational Philosophy Of Eliza R. Snow, Jolene Merica

BYU Studies Quarterly

Although in her early life Eliza R. Snow (1804-1887) was a school teacher, she gained prominence in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints not as a teacher but as a poet and as general president of the women's organization, the Relief Society. Consequently, her educational thinking and practice remain largely unexplored facets of her contributions to her nineteenth-century Mormon community. But Snow's ideas on education appear repeatedly in her poetry and in her speeches and other writings. The author explores Snow's educational ideas as they appear in four of her poems. "Genius Emancipated" portrays the fruitful effects of …

Helping Students Act As A Result Of Classroom Lessons, John Hilton Iii, Brandon B. Gunnell

Faculty Publications

President Thomas S. Monson taught, “The goal of gospel teaching . . . is not to ‘pour information’ into the minds of class members. . . . The aim is to inspire the individual to think about, feel about, and then do something about living gospel principles.” In this same talk he emphasized the importance of taking action as it relates to learning, saying, “I hear and I forget; I see and I remember; I do and I learn.” Thus a key responsibility in the role of a religious educator is to help students do things as a result of …

An Analysis Of The Teaching Aids Provided For Sunday School Teachers In The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints, Kevin Douglas Whitehead

Theses and Dissertations

Teaching is, and always has been, important in the work of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As one of the auxiliaries of the Church, the Sunday School has made an ongoing effort to provide effective teaching aids for its teachers in order to improve instruction in the Church. This work documents and examines change in principles of gospel teaching over the course of a century. By comparing teaching aids provided for Gospel Doctrine teachers in different time periods with guidelines found in the scriptures and words of modern prophets this work seeks to increase understanding of themes …

A Concurrent Validity Study Of Self-­‐‑Assessments And The Federal Interagency Language Roundtable Oral Proficiency Interview, Charles W. Stansfield, Jing Gao, William P. Rivers

Russian Language Journal

The National Language Service Corps (NLSC) was established in 2006 as a pilot program under the auspices of the National Security Education Program (NSEP). This new organization was tasked with providing and maintaining a standing civilian corps of certified bilinguals who would be available for service to federal government agencies as they are needed, and to state and local government agencies in time of emergency. The intent of the NLSC is to fill the gap between full-­‐‑time language services professionals and individuals who wish to volunteer for temporary services for short-­‐‑ or medium-­‐‑term assignments. The NLSC recruits a readily-­‐‑available pool …

Assessment Practices In Startalk Language Programs: A View Of Current Language Assessment Literacy, Margaret E. Malone, Megan J. Montee, Francesca Disilvio

Russian Language Journal

Assessment is essential to education, because it provides information on students’ progress toward learning goals. Reliable and valid assessment can provide not only important summative information, but also formative information to instructors and learners on both what has been learned and what remains to be learned. However, in order for assessment to be used effectively, instructors must understand the components of a reliable and valid assessment system and how to incorporate such a system into classroom testing. Many language instructors in the United States may lack basic knowledge of assessment and measurement (Popham, 2009).

A Case Study Of The Acquisition Of Narration In Russian: At The Intersection Of Foreign Language Education, Applied Linguistics, And Second Language Acquisition, Benjamin Rifkin

Russian Language Journal

Studies of students’ foreign language proficiency—including Carroll (1967), Magnan (1986), and Thompson (1996)—have shown that students in their fourth year of language study typically demonstrate oral proficiency in the intermediate range. Thompson’s study found the median score of students’ oral proficiency in the fourth year to be at the intermediate high/advanced threshold, but her subjects at this level of instruction were students at Middlebury’s summer language program and were tested in the last week of the program. In my own teaching practice, I have found that most of the students majoring in Russian at the University of Wisconsin-­‐‑Madison graduate with …

Taking The “L” Out Of Lctls: The Startalk Experience, Catherine Ingold, Mary Elizabeth Hart

Russian Language Journal

The less commonly taught languages in the United States are often those most critical to national security. How, then, can the number of students learning these languages be increased, and how can high-­‐‑quality instructors be produced to teach these languages? Having determined that foreign language skills are essential to diplomacy, economic competitiveness, and the security interests of the U.S., the Secretaries of State, Education, and Defense, and the Director of National Intelligence coordinated their efforts to expand language education beginning in kindergarten and continuing through elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education and into the workforce (United States Department of Education, 2008). …