"Sitting in (Ann Weinstein's) living room feels like sitting in a living room in Sweden," said Angela Sherwin '07, describing the setting of Weinstein's course, SW 10-20: "Beginning Swedish." But this semester is one of the last opportunities for students to enjoy Weinstein's living room - and to enjoy studying Swedish at Brown.
Weinstein will be retiring after the Spring 2008 semester, at which point courses in Swedish will be discontinued.
Weinstein teaches some of her classes at home after she injured her knee and found it difficult to walk to campus a few years ago. Today, she continues to lecture from her living room, which is decorated with a small wooden table and patterned carpet.
"Students prefer it because it gets them out of the classroom," Weinstein said.
Weinstein's unconventional teaching style, combined with her enthusiasm for Scandinavian culture, has attracted students to Swedish language courses for years. But now, after over 25 years at the University, Weinstein is retiring. "I'm getting old and (my) decision was made five or six years ago," she said.
Weinstein will still teach SW 10 and SW 30: "Intermediate Swedish I" this coming fall. She plans to take an unpaid leave in Spring 2007 to accompany her husband, Professor of Comparative Literature Arnold Weinstein, to Stockholm. In Fall 2007, Weinstein will return to the University to teach for one more academic year, after which she will officially retire.
Professor of German Studies Katherine Goodman, who chairs the department, said the decision to end Swedish classes was made within the past two years by the University, her department and Weinstein. According to Goodman, students today are gravitating away from Northern European languages like Swedish and German for a number of reasons. Goodman said Spanish, Japanese and Arabic are more popular because of the current social, political and economic landscape.
But Weinstein attributed the cutback to the University's limited funds rather than a lack of student interest. In addition, she noted the recent pressure on the University to provide funding for science research and science courses, which often require more money because of necessary equipment.
"Every penny has to be accounted for these days," she said, adding that "Swedish is cheap and science is expensive and something's got to go."
Some students, however, said they will be sorry to see the end of the Swedish program.
In addition to Sherwin, who said she supports the continuation of the program, Ariana Raufi '09 said she will be disappointed when Weinstein leaves. "I hope Brown finds a way to perpetuate (Swedish language courses) in the future," she said.
Weinstein first acquired her teaching role after students approached Weinstein's husband saying they were interested in studying Swedish, she said. Soon after, Weinstein unofficially began teaching a small number of eager students.
After petitions were made to the Department of German Studies, Weinstein was hired as a part-time lecturer, she said. Initially, the German Studies department was only able to support Weinstein's Swedish courses thanks to outside funds from the Brown Corporation, as the department could not afford the expense on its own, she said.
Weinstein said she has enjoyed teaching at Brown, adding that her favorite part has been interacting with students, who come from various backgrounds and disciplines. Some, like Raufi and her brother, Alexander Raufi '08, are of Swedish descent. Others, like Sherwin, who is concentrating in biomedical ethics, are interested in contemporary Swedish society. Sherwin said she is interested in the Swedish health care system.
"A Swedish class is like a Chinese menu," Weinstein joked. Political science concentrators have the opportunity to study the Swedish social service system, while pre-medical students can explore topics in Swedish health care.
"I like the mix I see - I get water polo players, feminists and political scientists and they have to talk to each other (in my class). This doesn't happen in most classes," Weinstein said. In addition, discussion is facilitated by the small class sizes, as most of Weinstein's sections include fewer than 10 students.
John Bourne '07, a history concentrator who began studying Swedish during his first year at Brown, said he enjoys this kind of interaction. "It's a nice little group of kids," he said. According to Bourne, students who had trouble with Spanish and French in high school would most likely have an easier time learning Swedish because it is grammatically similar to English.
While there may be similarities between the two languages, Weinstein identified several challenges in learning Swedish, which she also counted among its benefits. "You have to be willing to make a fool of yourself ... and not pretend you know the answers," she said. According to Weinstein, this vulnerability and open-mindedness ultimately makes learning a language rewarding.
As students reflect on their personal experiences in Weinstein's classes, many said they will miss her passion for Scandinavian language and culture and her unique style of teaching.
"The reason I take Swedish is because of (Weinstein)," Bourne concluded.
