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In their own words: Students on a summer spent at São Paulo Turing Summer School
By UCL CHE, on 25 January 2024
In August 2023, UCL students spent a month abroad in Brazil at the São Paulo Summer School to learn about the contemporary literature of São Paulo, with a focus on modernist and contemporary prose, poetry and drama.
These students then reflected on their experiences in São Paulo in a shared blog, talking about friendships formed, books read, places explored, and how the experience shaped their learning, both in and out of the classroom.
Student Conor Morrissey writes:
The people of Brazil were just as great; being immersed in the sprawling metropolis that is São Paulo allows you to learn so much about the people as well as their culture and history. The city itself is a hub of culture, and the opportunity to study at the nation’s most prestigious university gives you both an academic and practical understanding of the cultural landscape of São Paulo. As well as learning about the city through its vibrant literary and artistic scene, we were taken on field trips to some of the most culturally important museums in Brazil. We had the privilege to look over incredible artefacts and texts from the archives at the Institute of Brazilian Studies, and were guided around the Museum of Modern Art, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, both of which were host to fascinating and thought-provoking art pieces.
Or you can listen to a podcast made by students Maya Servio and Michela Capretto:
Michela: Anyway, so Maya now, I am curious, so tell me a story that encapsulates your entire experience of the summer school. Would you have a story for that?
Maya: So, we had, as Michela said before, we had night Portuguese classes. And during our last class for Portuguese, before we came back to the UK and everything, the teacher invited her friend, who was a professional Samba dancer. And she actually, while we were doing Portuguese, like everything was in Portuguese still, and we were still learning the language and everything, we were also learning Samba. And that was so fun because not only was I being exposed to a new language, but also the culture and the openness and everything. And then at the end, because there was two Portuguese classes, the other class all came looking through the door, being like, oh my gosh, I wanna do Samba as well. And then the teacher came through dancing, and it was just a very friendly, fun vibe. And that’s kind of what the uni was like as well. The student blog also features a suggested reading list and highlights from the summer school programme. Click here to explore the blog!
The student blog also features a suggested reading list and highlights from the summer school programme.
Click here to explore the blog!
This student blog was made possible by CHE’s Education Enhancement Grant, which was awarded to Dr. Ana Cláudia Suriani da Silva (SELCS).
