Skip to content

Japanese Placement Test Available NOW!!! For further information, please visit our website!

Department of Languages

Quick Links

»Degrees

»People

»Courses

»Events

»Links

Hilo

The Department of Languages offers instruction in Chinese, Filipino, French, Japanese, Latin, and Spanish, as well as related courses in literature, culture, and language studies.

Each program is comprehensive in approach, developing the functions of speaking, comprehension, reading, and writing and enhancing knowledge of the target area’s culture, history, society and the people.

Program Objectives and Student Outcomes:

  • Understanding the general nature of human language, first language and second language and verbal and nonverbal – its structure and use
  • Manifest the skills, understandings, and dispositions necessary to be a language specialist within the context of their professional work and social practice
  • Deepen their knowledge of the language and the culture through study of language, language pedagogy, literature and culture
  • Demonstrate an understanding of local language and language arts education issues of Hawai’i and the Pacific in their professional work
  • Improve the quality of learning and teaching of second, foreign, and heritage languages and area studies, in the state of Hawai’i, domestically, and abroad
  • Interpret the history of teaching foreign language and culture and its contemporary issues and critically evaluate and make use of research into the learning, use, structure, and its pedagogy

Degree Requirements

The Department of Languages does not offer a Language major. It, however, houses the following free-standing interdisciplinary programs:

People

  • Dudley, Kamila, M.A., Paris-Sorbonne University III, French, Instructor
  • Feng, Jiren, Ph.D., Brown University, Chinese and Japanese, Assistant Professor
  • Fukushima, Yoshiko, Ph.D., New York University, Japanese, Associate Professor, Department Chair
  • Honda, Masafumi "Masa", Ed.D., University of Georgia, Japanese, Associate Professor
  • Kunisue, Yukari, Ph. D., Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, Japanese, Lecturer
  • Minnitt, Monica, M.A., Middlebury College, Spanish, Lecturer
  • Mishina, Faith, Ph.D., Middlebury College, Spanish, Assistant Professor
  • Okuyama, Yoshiko, Ph.D., University of Arizona, Japanese, Associate Professor
  • Rogers, Lawrence, Ph.D., University of California at Berkeley, Japanese, Professor Emeritus

Courses

Language Courses
Chinese CHNS courses
Filipino FIL courses
French FR courses
Japanese JPNS courses
Latin LATN courses
Spanish SPAN courses
Language Studies LANG courses

Events

Links