2010 SUMMER PROGRAMS ABROAD INFORMATION SESSION
Monday, December 7, 2009, at 5:00 p.m., in 118 DeBartolo Hall
Info current as of 11-20-09; Check back for updates.
Location
Surrounded by the mountains and the sea near the southern tip of Africa, Cape Town is one of the world's most beautiful cities. It is also an ideal location to witness South Africa's dynamic change and to experience the contrast of a developed and underdeveloped country.
The city's economy is booming, and construction downtown is flourishing. Yet, while the city has many comfortable neighborhoods and suburbs, the townships surrounding the city are filled with millions of struggling, poor residents in housing that ranges from modest bungalows to squatters’ shacks.
Program of Study
During the six-week program (June 1 – July 9, 2010) students enroll in 2 courses, worth 3 credits each. Professor Anré Venter, Director of Undergraduate Studies for the Department of Psychology, will teach Negative Attitudes: A Cultural, Historical, and Social Psychological Analysis of Racism in South Africa. Students will also enroll in an IES course, Social and Economic Development in South Africa. Students will receive Notre Dame credit for these courses and they will be calculated into a student’s GPA. All courses will be taught in English; there is no language requirement for this program.
This program in Cape Town is offered for Summer 2010 only. It is possible that a program will be offered in Cape Town in subsequent summers. Future programs will likely differ in timing and courses offered. We must have 10 students confirm participation in this program to offer it during Summer 2010.
Eligibility for the Program
Applicants must be full-time students in at the University of Notre Dame or St. Mary’s College, with a suggested 2.75 GPA. Applications must be completed online, http://www.nd.edu/~ois/Apply/Summer_Apply.htm, by February 19, 2010.
Excursions
Students will be exposed to different areas in and near Cape Town as part of Professor Venter’s course. Students will visit Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners spent decades imprisoned during the apartheid era, as well as the District Six Museum, which serves as a remembrance to the events of the apartheid era. The program will also include weekly township/school/community visits to give you a first-hand experience with the culture and people you are studying. In addition, students will participate in a 5 night, 6 day excursion to Kruger Park and Soweto, including a 3-day Kruger park safari package and a 2-day stay in Soweto including a Soweto Bicycle Tour.
Housing
Students will live together in houses with other program participants. All houses are located next to one another and security coverage and regular cleaning of the common areas is provided. A local student will live with ND students during the program. Students will be responsible for providing all of their own meals; kitchen facilities are available. The housing is about a 15-20 minute walk to the University of Cape Town (UCT) campus. Students will have also access to the UCT Jammie Shuttle. The program also includes a weekend homestay in Langa, a Cape Town suburb.
Costs
The cost of the program is $6,400. This fee includes tuition, housing, field trips, cultural activities, and guest lectures. Participants will make their own flight arrangements and will be responsible for their own meals.
Course Information
PSY 34631 – Negative Attitudes: A Cultural, Historical, and Social Psychological Analysis of Racism in South Africa
This course provides a basic overview of the social psychological principles that describe and explain the development and functions of attitudes (beliefs-stereotypes, feelings-prejudice, and behavior-discrimination) and how these influence relationships – on an individual and group basis. These social psychological principles will then be used to analyze the development of and institutionalization of racism within the cultural-historical context of South Africa – one that is defined by intergroup conflict between the English and Afrikaans cultural groups, the tribal conflicts among the African tribes, as well as the black-white apartheid conflict. This portion of the course contextualizes the psychological in the historical-cultural-economic context. Finally, the course culminates in reading and discussing the words and life of Nelson Mandela whose response to institutionalized racism that oppressed his people and resulted in his incarceration for 27 years was one of reconciliation. Questions dealing with appropriate responses to negative attitudes as well as programs or policies to change existing negative attitudes or prevent the development their future development will be discussed. This course will count as a 30000-level course for Psychology majors. It will be crosslisted as SOC 34071 and AFST 34750.
SOC 34511 -Social and Economic Development in South Africa
This course provides an understanding of the historical evolution and transformation of the South African social welfare system from one of the past that was fragmented, racist, disempowering and exclusive, to the one that is developmental, participatory, empowering, just and inclusive. The course focuses on developing an understanding of social development, contextualized globally, regionally and locally, from both a policy and a practice perspective.
For Further Information contact:
Anré Venter, Ph.D.
Director of Undergraduate Studies
Department of Psychology
114 Haggar Hall
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN 46556
Telephone: (574) 631-6619
E-mail: aventer@nd.edu
or
Liz LaFortune
Office of International Studies
152 Hurley Building
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN 46556
Telephone: (574) 631-7251
E-mail: llafortu@nd.edu
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