November 30, 2008     

Dear Colleague,

We are delighted to inform you that the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Division of Education Programs, has once again funded our 2009 Summer Institute for School Teachers “The Art of Teaching Italian Through Italian Art, in Rome, Italy.”

Like the successful Institute that we held in 2004 on the campus of Georgetown University, Washington, DC, and in Rome in 2007, the 2009 program in Rome is offered in Italian and it is directed to teachers of Italian in elementary and secondary schools, both public and private.  Primarily held in Rome, Italy, over a four-week period: June 21^st to July 17, 2009, the program will include also a five-day academic excursion to Florence, Siena, and other sites in Tuscany.

The primary purpose of the Institute is to provide K-12 teachers of Italian with innovative tools and techniques on how to teach Italian language and culture through a content-based approach.  Specifically, the content chosen for this Institute is Italian art and the principal Italian artists whose outstanding works can be found in the museums and monuments of Rome and Tuscany.  In addition, the Institute will offer participating teachers the opportunity to interact with, and learn from, Italian art historians specializing in various aspects of Italian art, as well as with Italian artists and artisans who will discuss and demonstrate their skills.

Expert linguists from Italian universities specializing in the teaching of Italian as a foreign language will show how to use works of art -- including those available in your own communities -- in the teaching of Italian as a second language, and will discuss new teaching methodologies and changes in contemporary written and spoken Italian language.  In particular, we shall share and explore with all of you relevant and up-to-date classroom resources, handouts, and manuals on the history of Italian art and on the teaching of a foreign language through a specific subject.  We will meet five days per week, using a classroom setting for lectures, discussions, activities, and conferences, complemented by frequent on-site guided visits to pertinent monuments and museums both in Rome and in Tuscany.

All scholars will lecture in Italian. We will provide participants with the necessary art and linguistic vocabulary, as well as with the latest information on contemporary Italian language and cultural usages.  Tutoring sessions will be available at specific assigned times for those needing or requesting special attention to refine their Italian language skills and time will be set aside for individual study, brainstorming, and sharing results.

To encourage discussion, analysis, and synthesis, participants will be asked to write brief journal entries to be shared with the group. With the assistance and guidance of the Institute’s scholars, the final products of the Institute will be appropriate syllabi and samples of lesson plans integrating art in the teaching of Italian, appropriate for the level each participant teaches.

The following week-by-week outline will give a general overview of how the academic aspects of the Institute will be structured. A day-by-day tentative schedule of all classes and activities planned for the four-week Institute is also attached.

In general morning time will be dedicated to classroom lectures, discussions, and related activities, while afternoons will be spent visiting historical sites, monuments, and museums under the guidance of expert art historians.  Most weekends will be yours to spend as you please, while for one or two a special activity may be planned. 

During the Institute you will have free time to enjoy on your own Italy’s many beautiful artistic treasures, to visit special museums of your choice, or to go to the National Library or the university of Rome library to do some research for your specific projects. However, we expect that your four weeks will be dedicated to an intensive study of Italian art, to learning about content-based instruction, and to immersing yourselves fully in the Italian language and culture.  During three evenings of each week, from 5:30pm to 6:30pm, time will be set aside for interested participants to meet with a tutor for an Italian language review.

The Institute Faculty

The Institute’s guest faculty is constituted by a group of well-published, independent scholars and university professors with a proven record of excellence in teaching both in Italian and American institutions.

The art historians and modern history specialists include the following: Professor Terry Kirk, American University of Rome, who specializes in the art and history of Rome and in Italian architecture and design; and Professor Valentino Sani and Dr. Pamela Volpi, University of Rome-Tor Vergata, who will team-teach the relationship between art and modern Italian history from the early Renaissance to the Eighteenth century.

Stranieri di Perugia; Professor Andreina Sgaglione, Università per Stranieri di Siena; and Professor Diane Musumeci, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

In addition, a number of guest scholars will be invited to speak on content-based instruction and on other specific related topics dealing with Italian society, language and culture.

Institute Outcomes

It is expected that by the Institute’s end the participants will have completed the following:

1. An annotated list of  “How to Create and Adapt” materials for teaching Italian through Art, incorporating current, authentic resources and visuals elements;
2. Sample teaching units for beginners, intermediate, or advanced learners including Italian language exercises based on the selected artists and art works, with a set of related language activities using art;
3. A portfolio with a collection of approximately slides and color reproductions

      of works by Italian artists chosen by the group, including an Italian art timeline

      and information in Italian, on the artists studied and their most representative

      artworks.

Week One (June 21-June 28)

June 21: Arrival at the hotel.

June 22: The first day will be dedicated to orientation activities, to assessing individual language skills, needs, expectations, and to discussing and exploring together the Institute’s goals.

Classroom work, which shall be conducted mainly in the mornings, will focus on the following subjects:

• The history of art component, under the guidance of Professors Sani and Volpi, will examine 13^th, 14^th and 15^th century Italian art, focusing on the wide-spread use of the techniques and works of artists such as Giotto and Cimabue, who introduced more naturalistic and realistic depiction of the world and the human figure, as well as the revolutionary impact of artists such as Masaccio, Uccello, and other artists who reinterpreted the use of light, perspective and space. At the many Roman museums and, later, in Tuscany, we will be able to study and closely examine in person many paintings that illustrate the transition from medieval to Renaissance iconography. 
• In the language/methodology component, Professors Musumeci and Sgaglione will introduce and probe the various aspects of content-based instruction (CBI), which integrates language and content and the programs, models and approaches that the CBI method has produced at all levels of instruction.  Specific sample units will be presented and discussed at length.
• As far as the study of the Italian language is concerned Professor Costamagna will first conduct an oral and written assessment to identify and address the
• individual and collective needs of the group. She will then explore and dwell on the social situation and the geographic varieties of the Italian language, with emphasis on changes that have taken place, and on contemporary usage.
• Most afternoons will be spent visiting sites and museums containing artworks related to classic, medieval and early modern Italian art. Guided by our art history scholars we will visit the Vatican Museums, the Rome National Gallery and other sites and churches. (See attached at-a-glance schedule). 
• Since one of the Institute’s focuses will be Italian art, the Institute’s participants will be encouraged to begin developing an Italian art timeline.
• Professor Gisella Langé, a well-known Italian specialist on the European approach to content-based instruction, and Professor Giuseppe Massara, a specialist on American-Italian cultural relations from the University of Rome, “La Sapienza”, will address the Institute.

 
Week Two (June 29-July 5)

June 29 will be an official City of Rome holiday celebrating Rome’s Patron Saints.  You will have the opportunity to experience some interesting cultural activities. All offices and most stores will be closed. 

July 4^th Independence Day will be appropriately celebrated. Plans are under way for a special visit of the US embassy.

• The teaching of art history will focus on Italian art and artists from the early Renaissance to the Baroque.  Under the guidance of our art scholars, the Institute participants will view the works by artists such as Beato Angelico, Pinturicchio, Raffaello, Michelangelo, Caravaggio and Guido Reni and will visit monuments and museums such as Saint Peter and the Sistine Chapel, the Palazzi Vaticani, Palazzo Barberini, the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica, and Galleria Borghese.
• With Professors Musumeci and Sgaglione, we will further explore the current trends in the teaching methods of Italian, how to approach successfully the teaching of the more complex syntactical and grammatical structures of the language, and how to prepare quality unit lessons using the artwork selected. Content-based theory with art as its main component will be applied to specific classroom activities. In addition we will review and discuss the National Standards for teaching Italian by addressing communication, cultures, connections, comparisons, and communities. During this week, participants will begin working toward the design of the final project.
• Most afternoons will be dedicated to visiting art galleries, sites and museums housing art objects and major works of the artists and art periods studied. Furthermore, in preparation for our academic excursion in Tuscany, we shall encourage a visit to the Etruscan collection at the Villa Giulia National Etruscan Museum.
• Lecture on the Italian educational system by Professor Aldo Bove, Italian Ministry of Education.

 
Week Three (July 6-July 12)

• On Sunday morning we shall depart for a four-night/five-day academic excursion to Tuscany.  In addition to staying in Florence, we shall visit also other important Tuscan towns and localities such as Siena, where we will meet with educators from the Università per Stranieri.  While in Tuscany we shall visit some of the most important museums, churches, and monuments of Florence, such as Gli Uffizi and Palazzo Pitti and study the evolution of Italian art, from the early Medieval masters to Leonardo Da Vinci, Perugino, Andrea del Sarto, Botticelli, Tintoretto, and Tiziano, to the 18th Century rediscovery of mannered classicism in the works of artists such as Vasari, Veronese and Tiepolo, to the 19^th century replacement of neoclassical ideals with romanticized themes and artistic reflection of the political fervor of the Risorgimento.
• During this trip we will have a chance to attend a lecture on the Italian lesser arts, visit artisan workshops creating ceramics, lace and other crafts, possibly to engage in some hands-on activities that later you will be able to use in your classrooms with your students, and to taste some regional food specialties.
• As far as the Italian language is concerned, particular attention will be given to historical and socio-linguistic changes and to collecting and developing content-based teaching materials that can be used in the classrooms.  Time will be spent working in groups or individually in preparing the final projects.
• Transportation to Tuscany and back will take place by private, air-conditioned, buses and will be offered at no charge to the official Institute participants.

Week Four (July 13-July 17)

• Under the guidance of Professor Kirk, the art history component will focus mainly on Italian artists of the 19^th and 20^th centuries and on the architectural and urban history of Rome.
• Twentieth century Italian art was ushered in by Marinetti’s Futurist Manifesto in

      1909, followed both by “official” Fascist Art and by avant-garde works by such

      artists as De Chirico, Morandi, Fontana, and Manzù. In this last week we will summarize how Italian painting has affected the history of art through modern times, highlighting our discussion with a visit to the collection housed at the Galleria d’Arte Moderna. Additional time will be spent in visiting some of Rome’s monuments that reflect both ancient and modern art, with discussions on relevant artworks. 

• The cycles of lectures will be brought to conclusion. Participant teachers will present individual or group projects that will be critiqued and accompanied by pertinent feedbacks and comments.
• July 18: Departure from the hotel.

 
As you know, Italy has often been compared to a giant open-air museum with artistic beauty present at every corner.  Just bring a camera then, to build a memorable portfolio of images depicting Michelangelo’s Pietà at Saint Peter’s Church, or a beautiful Madonna painted with chalks by an itinerant artist on the stones of a Roman sidewalk, or a sinuous Modigliani masterpiece seen at the Modern Art Gallery.

The many world-renowned museums that are found in Rome, from the Vatican Museums to Villa Giulia’s National Etruscan Museum, Galleria Borghese, the National Gallery of the Academy of San Luca, Galleria Corsini and the National Gallery of Modern Art, just to name a few, constitute an unparalleled repository of masterpieces and precious artifacts. Within their walls you will find a formidable array of great works from early Greek, Etruscan and Roman times to those of the great artists of the Italian Renaissance, and the Baroque masters, to those created by the Futurists and other modern and contemporary masters.

In the course of our five-day academic excursion to Florence and Tuscany, a city and a region both known as the cradle of the Italian language and as the quintessential birthplace of the Italian Renaissance, we will visit the most important museums such as the Palazzo Pitti and the Uffizi Gallery and travel by private bus to visit and study memorable historical sites built during Dante’s or Boccaccio’s lifetime. While there, we will be able to visit and study the wondrous paintings or sculptures of Tuscan masters that are displayed in public squares or in major museums and churches, and throughout historical locations of that region.

In Rome there may also be occasional special receptions and meetings with official representatives of Italian institutions, so in addition to comfortable walking shoes and lots of no-iron summer clothes, bring along some light Sunday attire for these special occasions. Please be aware that both in Rome and Florence summer temperatures may reach high 80 degrees Fahrenheit, often with considerable humidity.

Given the fluctuating exchange of the Euro vis-à-vis the U.S. dollar, just keep in mind that you may find things a bit pricier then what they used to be.

Housing

2, will take place in Rome -- with convenient hotel lodging simply not available or going at a premium -- we could not consider any other dates.  We want to caution you that these are only good-faith estimate costs and they are in Euro and not in dollars. At this writing we cannot know what the exact exchange rate will be at the time we hold the Institute.

More specific information on the hotel facilities, availability of computer and email connections, etc., will be sent to all participants as soon as they become available. If you wish, you are free to make other housing arrangements; however, we strongly encourage everyone to stay and live with the group.  Proximate living is an important aspect of the summer study experience as it provides an opportunity to interact with other teachers of Italian from around the United States, to exchange ideas informally, and to build a network of context. All other necessary information on local bus and metro transportation, etc. will be furnished to the participants upon arrival.

Stipend

To help cover travel and living expenses for four weeks all participants will receive a taxable $3,200 stipend.

Rest assured that every effort is being made to keep costs down.  However, do keep in mind that we are going to Italy in the height of the tourist season, and that your NEH stipend most likely will not be enough to cover completely all your traveling and lodging expenses.

Some museum entrance fees will be offered at no expense to you, but others may not be.

NEH guidelines require that Institute participants are expected to attend all session activities and educational excursions, and must engage fully in the work of the project.  No teaching assignment or any other professional activities unrelated to their participation in the project may be undertaken. Participants who for any reason do not complete the full tenure of the project must refund a pro-rata portion of the stipend.

Per NEH guidelines, guests are allowed to participate only in selected social activities but not in excursions or instructional sessions.

Credits

Upon satisfactory attendance and completion of all Institute work, participants will receive a “Certificate of Attendance and Course Completion” offered jointly by NEH and the Italian Cultural Society of Washington, DC, Inc.

the opportunity to register for a three (3) or a six (6) credit course at a highly discounted rate, which we are in the process of negotiating. These credits, which will be offered at cost, will be awarded only if you register for the course, and complete by the end of the Fall Semester 2009 an extra project or other written academic requirement assigned.  This credit opportunity is completely optional.

After the conclusion of the Institute we hope that participants will keep in touch with each other and share our Institute’s results and experiences through a web site maintained courtesy of the Italian Cultural Society of Washington DC.

How to Apply

A complete application shall consist of three copies of the following collated items:

 -    A completed application cover sheet, which must be filled on line at this address: http://www.neh.gov/online/education/participants/. Please print out three copies of the completed cover sheet and add them to your application package.

 -     Your résumé detailing your educational qualifications and professional experience.

 -    An application essay on why you wish to participate in this Institute two to four double-spaced pages long, that must be written in Italian.

 -   Two reference letters, preferably from a supervisor or colleague acquainted with your work, with the signature of the referee signed across the seal of the envelope containing his or her letter.

Please review carefully the “NEH Summer Seminars & Institutes for School Teachers, Application Information and Instructions” document included with this letter and also available on line at the following link: www.italianculturalsociety.org

Your completed grant application should be postmarked no later than March 2nd, 2009 and should be sent to:

Project Director / Selection Committee

NEH Summer Institute 2009

“The Art of Teaching Italian Through Italian Art, in Rome, Italy”

Italian Cultural Society of Washington, DC, Inc.

4827 Rugby Ave., Suite #301

Bethesda, MD 20814.

Applications postmarked after the deadline or incomplete application packages will not be considered eligible.

Successful applicants will be notified of their selection by April 1, 2009 and will have until April 15, 2009 to accept or decline the offer. 

The Selection Committee will identify the 25 participants from a nationwide search on the basis of their teaching experience, their academic qualifications, and the application essay. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the Institute Directors at: (301) 215–7885 or e-mail both Prof. Severino at: severiro@georgetown.edu and Dr. Wilmeth at: maria.wilmeth@gmail.com

We are truly looking forward to your application and to working with you in this summer institute. We are sure that your participation will contribute to a most enjoyable

and productive experience for us all.

Best wishes,

Prof. Roberto Severino, ___________________________

Project Director

Dr. Maria Wilmeth, ______________________________

Project Co-director

Prof. Luigi De Sanctis, ___________________________

Project Co-director 

Click here for: NEH application information and instructions 2009
Click here for: Institute Calendar at a Glance.
Click here: for a Pdf version of the letter.