The Department of World Languages and Cultures has been offering Swahili Summer Study Abroad Program to East Africa since 2006. The Swahili Summer Study Program in East Africa is tailor-made to meet the language needs of our Howard Swahili students. The HUSSA program is a community based service learning program offering a cultural and linguistic experience in East Africa, the birth place of Swahili language and culture.

The acquisition of a second language to even a moderate level of proficiency is not an easy task, especially in the traditional system of language instruction at colleges and university levels where a typical language class may hold between 15 and 30 students, who receive instruction for three to four hours, a week with minimal target language contact. This is especially true for the less commonly taught languages like, Korean, Mandarin/Cantonese, Japanese, Portuguese, Arabic, and other Asiatic and African languages.

Consequently, it is evident that second language learners’ proficiency level is significantly impacted by a plethora of factors mentioned above along with motivational level, attitude, amount of time spent in language learning, methodological approach application as well as the type of environment in which learning takes place. A summer program such as the one Howard has, can help to address these variables that may impede a student’s ability to acquire his or her chosen language to the highest level possible.

Mwalimu Mkamburi Lyabaya is the Master Instructor and Language Coordinator of Less Commonly Taught Languages Program Coordinator of Swahili Summer Study Abroad Department of World Languages and Cultures. 

For more information please, contact Ms. Lyabaya at: mlyabaya@Howard.edu or 202 806 4121.