A new online course will teach the Tatar language and culture

Картинки по запросу mooc

TSU linguists have launched a new online course on the study of the Tatar language on the Coursera platform. The main audience of MOOС is young people who are interested in preserving national culture. The course Interaction between Languages and Cultures: Preserving and Expanding our Identity (on the example of studying Tatar as native and foreign) received a diploma of the international competition EdCrunch Award 2018 in the specialty Culture, History and Philosophy.

– We offer training in the basics of the Tatar language and culture,- explains Olga Nagel, Professor at Faculty of Foreign Languages, one of the authors of the course. – We want to show the processes of mutual influence and enrichment of two cultures – Russian and Tatar through the prism of the similarities and differences between the two languages living together in Russia. After all, they really have a lot in common, even the same alphabet and many borrowed words.

The main audience of the course is youth. For those who have Tatar roots, the study of language and culture will allow them to get closer to their relatives, to communicate more with grandparents, to contribute to the preservation of the Tatar language as a national heritage. For others, learning on the course is a chance to better understand the world of Tatar culture and to practice neural connections responsible for switching language codes. Students not only get acquainted with the vocabulary and beginnings of grammar but also master the methodological methods of learning the language – both as a native and a foreign language in different conditions of social interaction.

– Modern Tatar families no longer pay enough attention to transfer cultural knowledge and traditions to children, to teach them the national language. And we are convinced that bilingualism is useful not only in a general cultural sense but also for the intellectual development of children. Therefore, we want to invite young parents from the Tatar communities of the country to audition, – says Olga Nagel.

The course modules contain fascinating topics, for example, which peoples lived in Western Siberia prior to its entry into the Russian Empire and how the Siberian Tatars differ from their fellow – Kazan Tatars. As a language practice, you can try to read and write national recipes in the Tatar language.