São Paulo – The Inter-Department Language Center of the School of Philosophy, Language and Human Sciences (FFLCH) at the University of São Paulo (USP) is offering a free advanced Portuguese conversation and writing course to immigrants and refugees.
Enrolments must be made at 4pm on August 7 at Casa de Cultura Japonesa, in the USP’s Cidade Universitária campus. Twenty seats will be on offer on a first-come, first-served basis. Classes will be taught by Paola Mandalá in the facility’s 1st floor meeting room every Wednesday from 4pm to 6pm, from August 14 to October 2.
The course is intended to enable students to practice and prepare for the Celpe-Bras proficiency exam. Topics will include comprehension during the exam’s oral and written parts; study of recurrent text genres; a simulation using questions from past years; and vocabulary expansion.
The bulk of students in past editions of the course were from Syria and the Philippines, and some hailed from South America, Asia and the Middle East. Muslim women taking the course who couldn’t find nursery homes for their children were able to bring them alone. The kids were given material to make drawings and a place to sleep.
The initiative enables university-community integration, via the sharing of knowledge produced in academia with people who have just become part of the Brazilian society.
Quick facts
Advanced Portuguese conversation and writing course for Immigrants and Refugees
Professor Paola Mandalá
Enrolments: August 7, 4pm
Dates: August 14-October 2
Every Wednesday, 4pm-6pm
Casa de Cultura Japonesa – Cidade Universitária
Meeting room, 1st floor
Avenida Professor Lineu Prestes, 159, Butantã, São Paulo
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
