Weeks 5 and 6: Boston-London Semester 2017
During the last two weeks of the London semester, Boston-London students stayed busy finishing assignments and visiting the London spots still on their lists before they dispersed for the summer.
In the closing weeks of the semester, students wrote op-eds and worked on final projects. They reflected on urban design and the privatization of public spaces, and discussed how to incorporate quantitative data into their rhetoric papers. In their social science classes, they studied political changes in the late twentieth century– the rise of neoliberalism and the collapse of communism. A joint social sciences/humanities assignment encouraged the students to make interdisciplinary connections between their classes.
In their RH 104 class, students worked on a multimodal assignment — creating a video that tells the story of how England has remembered its dead over the last 200 years. Brandon Clifton’s video uses his own photography to show the old and new side by side: cemeteries and war memorials, soldier’s uniforms in museums, and a rally in Trafalgar Square to remember the 1984 Sikh genocide.
Students still made time for weekend journeys and side trips– a museum or two, a weekend trip to Bath, and some shopping at Brick Lane Market.
England was, of course, the perfect place to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the publication of the Harry Potter series on June 26th. The Harry Potter Studio Tour was a popular destination for students.
The end of the semester had students reflecting on Instagram about what they’ve learned– not just about academics but about themselves and what they can accomplish.
Akshay Pardiwala said, “Words can’t describe how transformative these six weeks have been. I was able to mature as a person while strengthening and repairing bonds with friends… I’m glad that London will always hold a special place in my heart.” Phoebe Vatis wrote, “Thank you to this amazing city for giving me the best memories of my life. I couldn’t have asked for a better semester.”
Chaneigh Bernard called it “the most adventurous” six weeks of her life and said, “Forever thankful that London could show me that even though I could never attend a field trip without my mom as the chaperone, I can travel across the world by myself… and love it.”
