Railroad Engineering

IS 3001 Finnish Language and Culture

Finnish Language and Culture course provides an overview of Finnish language with the goal of getting basic skills in Finnish language and to learn about the history and culture of Finnish people and Finland as a country. The course is taught by native Finnish speakers and utilizes interactive methods, such as games and music, to enhance the learning of the language and provide opportunities for cultural exploration through several field visits Teaching methods, grading policies and other detailed course information is presented in Course Syllabus (pdf)

Topics Covered:

Overview of Finnish History and Culture
History of Finnish Language
Alphabet and sounds
Pronunciation exercises
Counting
Telling time
Basic vocabulary
Useful questions and answers
“Survival Finnish” –words and short phrases that are useful while in Finland

Cultural visits:
- Finnish baseball game (video)
- Get-to-know Tampere tour
- Two-capital weekend trip to Helsinki and Tallinn, Estonia (photos)
- Glass Museum and Hame Castle (photos)
- Barbeque night in Finland (photos)
- Sauna evening at typical summer cottage (photos, video)

General Photo and Movie Index

Other information sources about Finland and Tampere:

Tampere University of Technology (location for lecture during program) - www.tut.fi

City of Tampere - www.tampere.fi

Virtual Finland (Excellent information on various aspects of Finland) - http://virtual.finland.fi/

Tavataan Taas! (Web site to learn the basics of Finnish language

Find Us, Inquire,
or Apply

Rail Transportation Program
Michigan Technological University
1400 Townsend Drive
Houghton, Michigan, 49931 - 1295, USA
Department Phone: 1-906-487-2520
Department Fax: 1-906-487-2943
Department E-mail: cee@mtu.edu