--- Forwarded Message from "David Pankratz" <[log in to unmask]> ---

>Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2001 11:53:17 -0500
>From: "David Pankratz" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Attack of Sept. 11 and Messages of Concern

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Dear LLTIers,

Yesterday was a day that touched the minds and hearts of persons in all countries and speakers of all languages. The ramifications transcend our focus on language learning and technology, and yet our work is related, importantly, to future developments.

As IALLT president, I would like to share with you a message sent to me by Dr. Bernd Rüschoff, President of EUROCALL. His message follows. After his message appears my response to him, slightly modified, which I would like to direct to you as well.

David Pankratz 

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>>> Prof. Dr. Bernd Rüschoff <[log in to unmask]> 09/12/01 02:36AM >>>
Dear colleagues and friends,

what happened yesterday is beyond comprehension!

But as the president of EUROCALL I would like to share my feelings of horror and sadness with you. In particular, I would like to send this message of comfort to all members of our American sister organisations at CALICO and IALLT, and to all our other American colleagues and friends. Please forgive that I (as a non-native speaker of English) might not have found the
appropriate words; in any case, I do think that what we had to witness yesterday is beyond what might be commented on by words. But I send this message with a deep feeling of sympathy as a representative of an organisation devoted to promoting international tolerance and understanding through language teaching. What happened in New York and elsewhere on the one hand shows how important all activities are which are aimed at raising intercultural awareness and at improving cross-cultural cooperation, yet how little we seem to acchieve. The world will not be the same after yesterday, but let's hope that people finally realize how senseless and inhuman terror and violence are.

If you feel it is appropriate, could those who are part of the CALICO and IALLT discussion boards please forward this message to their membership.

With sad greetings

Bernd Rueschoff (EUROCALL President)

Prof. Dr. Bernd Rüschoff
Universität-GH Essen
Anglistik - FUB III - Technologiegestütztes Fremdsprachenlernen
Universitätsstraße 12
D-45117 Essen
Tel.: +49-201-183-4052 (Sekr.: -3460 / Fax: -4225)
D2 mobile: +49 - (0)172-696-8141
E-mail: [log in to unmask] oder [log in to unmask] 
WWW: http://www.uni-essen.de/fet&ww/fue/germ/fb03/rueschh.htm 
WWW: http://www.uni-essen.de/anglistik/ 
WWW: http://www.uni-essen.de/anglistik/fub3.htm

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Dear Dr. Rueschoff, 

Thank you for your expression of concern. We are indeed united in many ways--as citizens of the world, as language professionals, and as people who not only work with language per se but truly believe in the importance of cross-cultural communication. The importance of our work is made explicitly apparent in a situation such as this one. 

This morning in a beginning German class I teach, I was encouraged by the reaction of my students, all of whom are in their early twenties. Their response seemed very thoughtful, kind and measured. They are worried about the potential to jump to dire conclusions or reactions, and seem to seek understanding as opposed to "action." You are right that our world is different, and one of our tasks is surely to give students the tools they need to analyze situations such as this one and come to productive conclusions. Language classs provide an ideal environment in which to talk about language, culture, history, and to frame this event in a more historical perspective, something with which Americans often have difficulty.  I talked with my students about some of the emails and phone messages I received from friends and colleagues in Europe, including yours.

Again, thank you for your concern and thoughts. As you and Peter Liddell have mentioned in subsequent emails, I will have your correspondence posted to the LLTI, the listserv read by a majority of IALLT members. 

Finally, in my opinion you have identified a challenge that goes beyond the mere teaching of language, and in our association, the focus on technology. Our challenge is to make the world a better place for all, regardless of language or culture. I hope that we can find the strength and the means to work in this direction, perhaps more than we have in the past.

Sincerely,
David Pankratz
President, IALLT