ABOUT Student Projects
In the section below I present brief descriptions of some of the projects the students were to complete for my POL 115 Introduction to Polish Culture, POL 120 Polish Short Story in Translation, Polish Arts and Culture in the 20th Century, POL 103 Intermediate Polish I and POL 202 Advanced Polish II classes. The texts are accompanied by original work created throughout the course of the semester.
POL 115 INTRODUCTION TO POLISH CULTURE:
Recycling Culture:
The final assignment for the class was to creatively approach one of the problems discussed throughout the course of the semester, such as Warsaw Uprising and history of the city, fashion under communism, rock music as resistance, street art as criticism of contemporary societies, rewriting folk, gender roles and social problems after 1989, and more. The students had a choice of writing and recording a song, presenting four fashion designs with descriptions, submitting a short story, recording a documentary, and drawing or creating a comic.
Comic Strip by Luda, Summer 2014:
POL 120 POLISH SHORT STORY IN TRANSLATION:
Short Story:
Instead of submitting an academic essay for the final paper the students were supposed to write their own short story based on a previously approved short story proposal. This way the students are not only putting theory into practice (each story has to have a carefully designed plot, use certain literary devices, and cultural context) but they also revise discussed concepts and information through the lens of their creativity.
Short story by Kasia, Spring 2016:
Short story by Iga, Spring 2016:
Short story by Mark, Spring 2015:
POLISH ART AND CULTURE IN THE 20TH CENTURY:
Literary Benches:
This was one of the assignments for the Summer Course in Krakow. The idea was to use urban space as a means through which the students get new information about history, culture and literature. Planty is a green area surrounding the oldest part of city. In 2014 as part of the project Codes of the City more than 100 Planty benches gained their patrons: writers, poets and intellectuals with some connection to Krakow. The task was to pick one of the benches, look at the plaque and find information concerning the patron. Then prepare a brief presentation of the author / artist and deliver it while sitting on the bench.
Video Presentation by Iza, Summer 2015:
Video Presentation by Ania, Summer 2015:
POL 103 INTERMEDIATE POLISH I
Comic Project:
The students were supposed to submit a one page comic strip (9 panel per page) in Polish that would use at least 10 phrases or words discussed monthly during the class throughout the month. They could have used one of the free online comic generators (such as http://chogger.com/), or draw a comic by themselves. The aim of the assignment was to practice vocabulary in communicative situations, which comic as a genre is perfectly suitable for.
Comic Strips by Marta and Zak, Fall 2014:
POL 202 ADVANCED POLISH II:
Futuristic Animals and Machines:
Part of the final grade for the class was to submit five longer written assignments on various topics. One of the tasks was inspired by Stanisław Lem's short story "Jak ocalał świat". The students were supposed to design their own machine, which would produce only items and things starting with the letter "p". They were to describe the machine, and advertise it, while at the same time, listing 30 words in Polish starting with "p". The second task, also based on the same text, was to write a story about imaginary animals "kambuzele", "murkwie" and "pćmy", the expedition that led to their discovery, the description of the creatures and the recommendations if they can be domesticated.
Story by Natalia, Spring 2016:
