WESTFIELD, Mass. November 21, 2011- Westfield State University (WSU) will hold a three-credit course titled “Vietnam: Culture, History, and Media” next summer that will include travel to the country next June 7th-23rd. The course is part of a partnership with Wilbraham & Monson Academy and is open to both high school students and students of the five colleges.
The course, led by Professor Tom Gardner of the WSU Communications department, will examine first hand the culture, history, and present reality of Vietnam. “We will learn about the media in Vietnam, and we will also compare what we learn about Vietnam with what is reported, or not reported, here in the American media,” Gardner said.
Gardner, along with Michael Dziura of the Wilbraham & Monson Academy faculty, will take the students to Vietnam and visit Hanoi, Hue, and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) as well as the Angkor Wat temples in Cambodia.
Professor Gardner said that many people only visualize Vietnam in a state of war.“Vietnam is not just a war; it is a country,” Gardner said.
Besides seeing ancient temples and museums, the students will meet with their counterparts in Vietnam. Gardner has arranged meetings with the students of three professors in Vietnam who teach American studies.
“Our two countries histories are inextricably linked, and they want to get to know us now in peacetime as much as we need to reach out to them,” Gardner said.
Gardner expects students will be struck by the contrast between how much impact the U.S. has had on Vietnam and the relatively little media attention it receives in the U.S.
“Even such issues as Agent Orange and its continuing impact in terms of terrible birth defects three generations later are simply ignored in the U.S. media,” he said.
Agent Orange was a defoliant used by U.S. forces throughout South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. “This subject really hits home,” said Dziura. “I have a dear friend who suffered from Agent Orange-related cancer when he was two-years-old.”
The group will meet with non-government organizations in Vietnam who are working to help the victims of Agent Orange. They will also meet with U.S. veterans who are helping Vietnamese victims of land mines and other explosive devices that still dot the countryside.
Dziura, who teaches media studies courses in Wilbraham & Monson’s Center for Entrepreneurial and Global Studies, will be documenting the trip, with the help of some of the students. The WMA students who are going on the trip are all graduating seniors. Most of the Westfield State students enrolled are communication majors.
The course is open to students from area colleges and to any participant who would like to explore Vietnam while earning three college credits. There may also be openings for non-credit participants. The cost of the trip is close to $5,000, but there will be fundraising efforts to offset the costs. Credits are transferable. Registration is through the International Programs office at Westfield State, with tuition for credit paid through WSU’s Division of Graduate and Continuing Education. The registration deadline is Dec. 9, 2011.
For more information on the trip, contact Professor Gardner at tgardner@westfield.ma.edu. For registration information, or the online “Go Global” brochure on this and other international courses, go to www.westfield.ma.edu/educationabroad.
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Westfield State and Wilbraham & Monson Academy partner to hold traveling course
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