Learning a foreign language is normally a classroom exercise, but for Nadine Lenker and Dana McKie, speaking in English or German is just a part of coffee shop conversation.

Lenker and McKie are two students in the Language Exchange program, an activity that pairs two students with different language backgrounds to meet at least once a week to practice both languages.

Lenker and McKie have been meeting twice a week for three weeks at Starbucks on campus to practice English and German conversation.

Advertisement

Lenker, a non-degree exchange student from Freiburg, Germany, said McKie helps her with oral presentations, essays and a lot of daily life questions.

“When I go up to a register and hand them my card, they ask me debit or credit, which confuses me because in Germany we have separate cards, one for debit and one for credit,” Lenker said.

Lenker also encountered problems when buying laundry detergent. She said in Germany, people use one detergent for white clothes and another for all other clothes.

“I am at Wal-Mart and there are 187 different laundry detergents, and I couldn’t find the one for white clothes,” Lenker said. “Dana explained to me that here people use one detergent for all clothes, and using bleach is an option.”

In exchange, Lenker is helping McKie with basic German introductions.

McKie, a junior from Bossier City, La., studying agriculture, said by the end of the year she would like to have enough knowledge of the German language to survive if she ever visited the country.

McKie and Lenker are a unique match because McKie lived in London for five years and is able to help Lenker distinguish between British English and American English.

Advertisement*

“In Germany, we are taught British English, so the English I know is different than what is spoken here,” Lenker said, “Dana has lived in London and knows about the problems I encounter because of that.”

The Language Exchange program branched off another program offered by the international center called English in Action.

English in Action is a program that pairs an international student with an American student to practice English conversation exclusively. In the Language Exchange program, it is normally the American student who is seeking an additional language beyond English.

Community Programs Coordinator Elaine Conrad said the program works only if a language inquired about is available.

“Sometimes we have trouble finding a match. Right now we have 10 students who are interested in learning Japanese and not enough students who are fluent in Japanese to pair them up with,” Conrad said.

Conrad also said the programs work to encourage friendships that otherwise wouldn’t have been made.

“The program has helped me put myself out there,” McKie said, “We are both far from home, and this eases the transition. Nadine is a kindred spirit.”

McKie and Lenker have already started planning other activities such as going to an American movie and cooking a German meal together.

“Dana helps me understand the country, not just the language, and that is why I am here,” Lenker said,.

Jennifer Butcher can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 274 or [email protected].