Willamette World News

Greetings, For this issue, we asked our Language Assistants to choose a topic that interested them and gave them free reign to write about it. This has made for some of our most interesting and diverse articles yet! From German conspiracy theories to Russian TV culture, we’re sure you can find something in this issue […]

By Mariia Ulibegova If you find yourself in Russia and want to have a pleasant evening with a slice of pizza in one hand and a remote control in the other, what do you do? For a really long time now Russian television has been used as a platform to push the ‘official’ political agenda in […]

By Fernanda Oliver Ooh, mate, my faithful companion. For this last issue of the Willamette World News, I was asked to write about something that was deeply related to my country’s culture. If I had to choose one element that is linked to Argentine culture, history, traditions, people, and basically everything, it all comes down […]

By Stina Köster I have to be honest with you – writing this article might be dangerous for me. But I think it is time for me to speak up! Although I might be attracting THEIR attention… What I would like to write about today is Bielefeld. If you ask Germans what Bielefeld is, you […]

By Julia M. Robleto Flores In the heart of the American continent, a land of lakes and volcanoes emerges known as Nicaragua, a country with old colonial cities, lonely beaches, impressive lakes and lagoons, many volcanoes, bodies of water, wild jungle, and breathtaking mountains with 70 different exotic ecosystems. It’s hard to believe that there […]

By Shotaro Kumano I don’t know if everyone knows, but the hip-hop dance is lately very popular in Japan. Especially in colleges and high schools. Most schools have dance teams and do various types of dancing which are originally from the U.S. It’s can be hard to identify the name of the dance but it’s […]

Greetings, Have you ever wondered how your education compared to students around the world? Well, look no further, because the Willamette University Language Assistants from Argentina, Nicaragua, Japan, Germany, France, and Russia recount some of their experiences in this issue on “Education Around the World.” As a special edition to this issue, check out this […]

By Shotaro Kumano Japan has some unique educational customs in the school. Of course, in the class there are some strategical methods to education, but I’m going to focus on education at outside of class. Outside of the class is very significant for building a responsibility, bond, and roll in the group.

By Julia M. Robleto Flores In a quote, Gandhi says, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” From that point of view, I believe that from any perspective, whether it be historical, theoretical, theological, social or psychological, education can be perceived as a central axis of human development. […]

By Norma Fernanda Oliver Education sets us free, education is a universal key to infinite doors. In Argentina, the obligatory education starts at the age of 5; however, I started attending school at the young age of two. Both of my parents worked and there was not child care or nurseries where I lived, so […]

By Mariia Ulibegova In this article I will try to recall my most vivid memories and most distinguishing features of all the levels of Russian education I’ve been through, from learning how to write to learning how to write a thesis.

By Stina Koster Those of you who have already talked with us language assistants before might have noticed that most of us share a common characteristic: Many language assistants want to become teachers when they are back in their respective countries. This is my dream, too. However, I am going to be a teacher at […]

Greetings, In light of Trump’s recent inauguration, we have asked the current Willamette University Language Assistants from Argentina, Nicaragua, Japan, Germany, France, and Russia to weigh in on their perspectives of the election. With varying insight into how an election such as this one can affect one’s nation to predictions of how the election will impact […]

By Julie Dine, French Language Assistant Living in the U.S. during the latest elections was a deeply upsetting experience. Many people were shocked from the results, myself included. One could say Oregon filled with a very open-minded, tolerant, and caring population. So, naturally, it was a hard time for our university. People were obviously down, […]

By Mariia Ulibegova, Russian Language Assistant In this article I want to present various views on the outcome of the U.S. presidential election that individuals and certain media hold in Russia. Is Trump good or bad for Russia? Opinions differ. I want to show how they differ and why. I also tried to incorporate these […]

By Stina Koster, German Language Assistant When I was asked to write an article about the reaction in Germany to the election of the new President of the United States of America, I definitely had problems with starting to write it. Where was I supposed to start? I remember talking to friends before I left […]

By Shotaro Kumano, Japanese Language Assistant On election day, I was on campus watching the ballots being counted on TV with my friends. I still remember what the atmosphere was like after the President of the United States was decided. Many of the people had feelings of fear, sadness, anger at that time. And, at […]

By Julia Flores-Robleto, Spanish Language Assistant November 8th was a historic day in the United States of America. The world is holding its breath after the results of the election. Trump is a man with radical ideas and holds an anti-immigrant position fueled by xenophobia. Despite this, he managed to receive millions of votes. Donald […]

By Fernanda Oliver, Spanish Language Assistant *The following article is based on my sole opinion and does not aim at tokenizing Argentinian people.* It is a well-known fact that politics and soccer are hot topics in Argentina, so most people try to avoid them. Yet more often than not, we see a Boca vs River¹ […]