Magkakaroon na ng kursong Tagalog sa Harvard University, ang isa sa most prestigious universities sa buong mundo.
Ito ang kauna-unang pagkakataon na mag-o-offer ng language courses ang Harvard, na kilalang Ivy League inivesrity sa U.S.
Isa itong achievement para sa wikang Tagalog, na siyang ika-apat na most-spoken language sa U.S.
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Ulat ng The Harvard Crimson, ang student newspaper ng unibersidad, nitong March 24, 2023, tatlong teachers ang kukunin para magturo ng Tagalog, Bahasa Indonesian, at Thai bilang mga kurso sa pagsisimula ng 2023-2024 academic year.
Ito ang unang beses na i-o-offer ang Tagalog bilang kurso sa Harvard, habang nauna nang may kurso para sa Indonesian at Thai.
Kilala ang 386-year-old Harvard dahil sa world-renowned faculty members nitong karamihan ay Nobel Prize winners at state-of-the-art resources.
TAGALOG TEACHING POSITION AT HARVARD
Ang teaching positions ay magiging three-year term appointments na renewable hanggang additional na lima pang taon.
Nakakuha ng financial support ang Harvard University of Asia para sa tatlong teaching positions sa pamamagitan ng fundraising, paliwanag ni Executive Director Elizabeth K. Liao.
Sabi naman ni James Robson, professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations and director for Asia Center, ang kanilang administrasyon ay nakalikom ng $1 milyon mula sa Asia Center’s budget bilang pondo para sa teaching position.
“We’re very excited and hopeful that these positions will be a game-changer in terms of the Asia Center’s long-term mission to build Southeast Asian studies at Harvard, as well as the university’s engagement with the region,” ani Liao sa isang email.
Dugtong pa ni Harvard Philippine Forum Co-President Marcky c. Antonio isinusulong niya na hindi lang lenggwahe ang ituro sa Tagalog course.
Aniya, “While this is the first Tagalog language course that’s ever been offered in Harvard’s history, I think there’s also this sense that we need to make sure we teach this right—not only Tagalog language, but Filipino culture as a whole.”