by Gabrielle Bonifacio
After moving to Germany for a couple of months to work in business development, 4th-year mechanical engineering student Callum Woznow enrolled in Dr. Uma Kumar’s GERM 100 (Beginner’s German) class with a drive to learn more about German language and culture.
“I tried to learn the language on Duolingo, but didn’t get really far,” he says, laughing. “My grammar was just brutal.”
Though Woznow already had some familiarity with German, it was a focus on form in the classroom that helped him progress on his language journey: “Learning the grammar and diving into that was super helpful. That’s where all my learning happened.”
A highlight of the course, however, were the Beginner’s German Culture Today modules. Collectively, these modules are a newly developed component in UBC’s German curriculum, which focuses on diverse experiences and cultures in German-speaking countries.
“Learning about other people who immigrated to Germany and become successful was pretty cool,” Woznow begins, as he references the modules’ focus on timely and inclusive topics.
As someone who also worked there, Woznow was pleased to learn about present day examples highlighting Germany as “an inviting environment to work in for internationals, even though there’s a language barrier….and seeing how that applied to company founders.” These modules also focus on the challenges that minoritized groups face in Germany.
Woznow speaks at length about Germany’s multiculturalism in this YouTube short, which provides a helpful overview of how students will benefit from the modules.
When asked if he had any interest in talking about his experience, Woznow readily agreed, and credits the course and Professor Kumar for motivating him to do so: “I liked the class and the professor. I enjoyed the class a lot.”
Regarding tips for incoming students, Woznow wisely encourages them to practice speaking with their international peers or fellow German learners. And although it can seem intimidating at first, Woznow further emphasizes that language is more about communication than perfection.
“Don’t always try and make your grammar perfect to speak. A lot of people won’t speak unless what they’re saying is perfect…[But] when you speak to other people from other languages in English, and you just hear them speaking, and you understand what they’re saying, even if it’s not right, no one judges you. They just want to hear you speak in their language.”
After all, the art of trying and trying again is an important lesson, especially in a field where making mistakes is integral to growth.
Woznow’s final tip is something that we can all remember when we are learning something new: “Just don’t be afraid, even if it’s not grammatically correct.”
To find out more about the UBC German Studies program, click here. If you have any questions about the program or are interested in some of our opportunities, contact Dr. Ervin Malakaj (Assistant Professor of German Studies and Director of Undergraduate Studies in German).
