French refinement in France

Student off to France as the first recipient of the French Department’s Travel Bursary Program

When Tomasz Raubic came to Carleton University he hardly spoke a word of French.  Two short years later, now a French major, Raubic is well on his way to achieving his goal of becoming an English-French, French-English simultaneous translator.

Having already attained a degree in teaching English, and possessing an array of real world experience in teaching English as a second language, Raubic made the decision to further pursue French as a method of broadening his teaching horizons.

Currently, Raubic is a Teaching Assistant in the Department of French and is working a few hours a week in the department’s conversation practice drop-in service.  He is helping students who are learning the language get a handle on the skills needed to become functionally and/or fluently bilingual.  Raubic spends much of his time helping others, as he is teaching French in both a University setting, and off campus.

For a student to start in French as a true beginner, and then to continue on with the program to successfully become fluent in both of Canada’s official languages in such a short time period is hardly a regular occurrence.  In fact, what Raubic has accomplished is quite rare.  Though he has demonstrated a true gift for learning language – Raubic is also fluent in Polish, and functional in Spanish – he insists that his learning process is the same as anyone else’s.

“I simply apply the strategies that I employ while teaching my students a language – immersing oneself, dedicating, spending countless hours living in the ‘milieu’ – TV, radio, Internet, newspapers, even menus in a cell phone”, explains Raubic.  “Listen, imitate, go through millions of trial/error cycles and most importantly, never shy away from practicing.  Once you nail the fundamental grammar structures and manipulate the most common 800-1000 words, you’ve got it! From there, it is smooth sailing.”

Professor of French and Chair of the French Department, Catherine Khordoc, calls Raubic an “exceptional student”.  So exceptional, that the department has selected Raubic as their first ever participant in the Travel Bursary Program, which encourages students majoring in French to go on exchange in a French-speaking country.

Raubic will receive a $1000 bursary in order to help him pay for the costs associated with participating on an international exchange. He will be going to the Université de Grenoble III, as part of the Ontario-Rhone-Alpes exchange.

Raubic is hoping that his trip to France will refine his French speaking abilities.

“Essentially, the decision to go on the exchange relate to my willingness to achieve a polished, fluent, perfected, and fluid mastery of French”, says Raubic.

Upon his return to Canada, and the completion of his undergraduate degree in French, Raubic plans to pursue his Master’s in Translation and Interpretation and continuing his passion to teach.

When asked what it is he enjoys so much about possessing an intimate knowledge of French language and culture, Raubic explains that in many ways, French offers a pleasant discrepancy.

“I love translation and interpretation…switching between the rigid, organized structure of the Germanic language – English – into the soft, silky domain of the Latin one – French, in my view, creates that nice contrast of melodies. All in all, it’s the rhythm, ‘music’ and flow that I adore in the French language.”

Khordoc hopes Raubic’s experience in French will be inspirational to other students who have an interest in French.

“What I hope other students learn from Tom is that you can learn a language, and reach a very high level of fluency, but you cannot do that just by going to class for 3 hours a week.  Learning a language, and its cultures, takes a lot of time and you have to work on it, everyday, in a much focused manner.  You actually have to spend time listening, reading, speaking, memorizing vocabulary, grammar structures, analyzing what you read and hear, so that you can imitate it. Learning French, or any other language, requires a great deal of effort and concentration, but I hope that when students hear Tom, they will feel inspired, and they will feel that all the effort is worthwhile.  Hopefully, others will also be interested in participating in exchanges in coming years.”