Mentored Swahili Courses

Swahili Course Schedule - Fall 2012 (pdf)        Ready to Register? Go straight to How to Register

Also see the Online Orientation Tutorial for more information about how the Mentored Program works and to see video examples of tutorials and conversation sessions.

About the Mentored Swahili Program

Swahili is highly recommended for students preparing to study abroad in Kenya, Tanzania, or Uganda. It has many similarities with other languages spoken in east and southern African and is used as a lingua franca throughout the region. It also shares much vocabulary with Arabic and is useful for students interested in cultural contact between eastern Africa and the Arab world.

Mentored Swahili is offered with half-course and full-course options. The elementary course sequence is Swahili I, II, III, and IV. Each of these courses is a half-course and it takes four semesters to complete elementary Swahili. Students who wish to quicken their pace, should choose appropriate full-course options: Swahili I-II, Swahili II-III, or Swahili III-IV.

Students can begin Swahili in either the fall or spring semesters and every level is available each semester. This allows maximum flexibility for students preparing for or returning from study abroad or for students who need flexibility in order to accommodate science and engineering labs, fieldwork, or other required courses.

The mentored courses are based on course plan study guides created with support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The course guides for elementary Swahili and syllabi for all Swahili courses are online on the Five College Center for the Study of World Language's LangMedia website. The courses cover speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills.

Half-courses require at least one hour per day of independent study, a weekly one-hour conversation session, and a weekly 30-minute individual tutorial with the Swahili mentor. Full-courses require at least two hours per day of independent study, a weekly 1.5 hour conversation session, and a weekly 60-minute tutorial with the Swahili mentor.

Agnes Kimokoti joined the the Five College community as full-time Swahili mentor in Fall 2006. She conducts tutorials for the Swahili program, leads the Swahili Colloquium for upper-level Swahili students, conducts some conversation sessions, and facilitates other Swahili-related events. Her home base is Hampshire College, but she conducts tutorials and/or conversation sessions on all five campuses. She can be reached at akimokoti@hampshire.edu

Half-courses are each worth 1.5 credits at UMass. Transfer credit at the colleges varies, but is generally: Amherst College – ½ course; Hampshire – credit; Mount Holyoke – 2 credits and at the elementary level two courses or the equivalent are required to receive credit; Smith – 2 credits and at the elementary level two courses or the equivalent are required to receive credit. Full-course are worth twice the amount of credit at each of the schools.

For registration instructions, see How to Register .

Swahili Course Descriptions
Not all courses are offered every semester. See the schedule at the top of this page for current offerings.

Mentored Swahili I (FORLANGC 111E)

Beginning course, no prerequisites. Independent study combined with weekly small group conversation sessions and individual tutorials with the Five College Swahili mentor. Emphasis on developing speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills. Final grade based on weekly homework and conversation session preparation, an end of semester writing skills assessment, and a final oral evaluation.

Mentored Swahili I-II (FORLANGC 111E and 112E)

Full-course pace for those who want to complete both Swahili I and Swahili II in one semester. 1.5 for each course for a total of 3 UMass credits. Students will have one 1.5 hour conversation session per week, plus sixty minutes of individual tutorial. Beginning course, no prerequisites.

Mentored Swahili II (FORLANGC 112E)

Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili I or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili II-III (FORLANGC 112E and 121E)

Full-course pace for those who want to complete both Swahili II and Swahili III in one semester. 1.5 for each course for a total of 3 UMass credits. Students will have one 1.5 hour conversation session per week, plus sixty minutes of individual tutorial. Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili I or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili III (FORLANGC 121E)

Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili II or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili III-IV (FORLANGC 121E and 122E)

Full-course pace for those who want to complete both Swahili III and Swahili IV in one semester. 1.5 for each course for a total of 3 UMass credits. Students will have one 1.5 hour conversation session per week, plus sixty minutes of individual tutorial. Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili II or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili IV (FORLANGC 122E)

Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili III or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili IV-V (FORLANGC 122E and 211E)

Full-course pace for those who want to complete both Swahili IV and Swahili V in one semester. 1.5 for each course for a total of 3 UMass credits. Students will have one 1.5 hour conversation session per week, plus sixty minutes of individual tutorial. Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili II or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili V (FORLANGC 211E)

Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili IV or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili V-VI (FORLANGC 211E and 212E)

Full-course pace for those who want to complete both Swahili V and Swahili VI in one semester. 1.5 for each course for a total of 3 UMass credits. Students will have one 1.5 hour conversation session per week, plus sixty minutes of individual tutorial. Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili II or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili VI (FORLANGC 212E)

Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili V or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili VII (FORLANGC tba)

This course focuses on developing vocabulary and communication skills necessary to work health and development settings in East Africa. Swahili VII will focus on developing listening comprehension, cultural knowledge, conversational skills, and vocabulary. One conversation session per week and a weekly tutorial. Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili VI or the equivalent.

Mentored Swahili VIII (FORLANGC tba)

This course focuses on developing vocabulary and communication skills necessary to work health and development settings in East Africa. Swahili VII will focus on developing listening comprehension, cultural knowledge, conversational skills, and vocabulary. One conversation session per week and a weekly tutorial. Prerequisite: Mentored Swahili VII or the equivalent.

Advanced Swahili for Health Policy Studies

An advanced Swahili course for students interested in health-related topics. The course will focus on the linguistic skills necessary to read about, discuss, and participate in health-related environments in East Africa. Prerequisite: A minimum of Mentored Swahili VI but Swahili VII and/or VIII are recommended pre-requisites and may be required by the instructor depending upon conversational and reading proficiency in Swahili.

Advanced Swahili for Development Policy Studies

An advanced Swahili course for students interested in development studies. The course will focus on the linguistic skills necessary to read about, discuss, and participate in development projects in East Africa. Prerequisite: Prerequisite: A minimum of Mentored Swahili VI but Swahili VII and/or VIII are recommended pre-requisites and may be required by the instructor depending upon conversational and reading proficiency in Swahili.

Swahili Senior Research (FORLANGC tba)

Students involved in senior projects, special concentrations, or theses using Swahili sources may arrange a special Swahili course working with the linguistic aspects of those sources. Students should discuss this possibility with Agnes Kimokoti and with the program director/associate director during the semester prior to starting the project. A written project plan will need to be created and approved in order to enroll for senior research credit. Prerequisite: Minimum of Mentored Swahili VI, but more advanced skills may be required depending upon the project.