1. Review the 2020-21 Trip Descriptions for details and qualifications.
2. Read the trip-specific questions BELOW and prepare a response in a separate Google Doc for each desired travel destination.
3. Read through the PDF version of the Payton Student Travel Application so that you can be prepared to respond.
4. Complete the ON-LINE application for 2020-21 Trips and Exchanges and upload your trip-specific responses in the section indicated in the application.
1. This trip’s focus is on the history and culture of Greece as it relates to the language, art, architecture and customs of the country and on Athenian life in particular. What experiences do you expect to gain in this context and why is this knowledge valuable to you?
2. Why is it important to visit, research and learn about ancient cultures in our modern and technology-focused society?
3. When traveling, oftentimes things do not go as planned and problems arise. How do you handle the challenge of the unexpected? How do you try to mitigate stress when problems arise?
1. Explain why you are interested in participating in a marine biology trip to the Dominican Republic trip.
2. Provide 3 reasons why you should be considered for this trip.
3. If you know of friends who are applying for the Dominican Republic trip as well please list their names and explain why they should join this trip.
3. ¿Por qué te interesa viajar a Oaxaca? Responde en español en uno a dos párrafos bien elaborados (sin asistencia de un traductor).
1. Field research is a methodological approach to observe behavior under natural conditions. It can include the observation of organismal behavior, field experiments, and surveys or the collection of systematic data in natural settings. Why is field research important and essential to the understanding of natural systems? Cite a specific discovery in which field research was an essential component and explain how the field research led to the discovery.
2. Field research is hard work. Some days we will be getting up at dawn to start surveying wading birds. At other times, we will be staying up late to observe the behavior of nocturnal caimans. There may be times in which you will be outside for hours and you don’t observe any animals at all. How are you going to stay positive throughout this research experience? How will you help others stay positive and feel included?
1. How has taking Latin at Walter Payton positively impacted your work in other academic classes and/or in your activities, conversations, and reading outside of school?
2: Why is Rome an important place to visit for a high school Latin student in the 21st century? What types of monuments, relics, and Latin inscriptions do you anticipate seeing? What are you most excited to see and experience in Rome? Why?
1. “In his book, Religion in the University, a reworking of a series of lectures given at Yale in 2001, Nicholas Wolterstorff examines a range of assumptions held by academics. He begins with the premise that he is talking about a “secular university,” like Yale (rather than, say, a “religious university” like Notre Dame). Asking whether there is a place for a religious voice in such a university, he turns to the influential Max Weber, for whom “meaning, worth, duty, value and the like do not fall within the scope of academic disciplines.” Such a view dominated the ethos of research universities throughout the 19th and 20th centuries but has more recently been challenged. With increasing sensitivity to the contextual nature of inquiry, scholars have come to appreciate particularity—or what Wolterstorff calls “character identities” (whether feminist, Marxist, Latinx, etc.).”
Do you agree with Max Weber’s perspective on religion in academic institutions? How should intellectuals reconcile religion and faith with intellectualism and science? (400-600 words)
2. This trip has a physical component, requiring endurance and fitness. We aim to walk the Camino Frances (100km) in 5 days. That is about 14 miles per day. Much of it will be flat and paved, but some of it will be hilly and not paved. Please tell us why you feel fit enough to take on this challenge. If you are not fit right now, please tell us how you will become fit enough by March of 2021.
3. Please tell us why you want to be part of this experience. Be sure to discuss the role of religion and faith in your personal or intellectual/academic world. Also, tell us what you will bring to the trip. WHY should we choose you to be part of this group?
1. Senegal is known as the country of teranga. Often described as a blend of hospitality, respect, community and solidarity, teranga is in fact much more than a set of values. Used to evoke warmth, friendliness and selflessness, it guides the Senegalese way of life and is instilled into each generation at an early age. “It’s the most important value” in Senegalese culture, and it all boils down to “the way you treat the guest.” (Pierre Thiam, celebrated Senegalese chef).
How do you and/or your family practice teranga in your life or home? OR Tell us about a time when someone offered you teranga and how it made you feel.
2. Throughout the history of Payton, our French program has traveled to France, Quebec and Morocco. What does it mean to you to have the opportunity to participate in the very first French department excursion to the West African country of Senegal? What do you know about Senegal that piques your interest in traveling there? What do you want to know?
3. “Le mot bonheur recouvre bien quelque chose, n'est-ce pas ? J'irai à sa recherche.”
The word 'happiness' does indeed have meaning, doesn't it? I shall go in search of it.
-Mariama Bâ, Senegalese Author and Feminist, Une Si Longue Lettre
How will this trip allow you to search for meaning and happiness?
4. Léopold Sédar Senghor brought Senegal’s various ethnic and religious groups closer after suffering colonization and the period of enslavement through the concept of teranga when they gained independence in 1960. “Senghor, a Christian, championed teranga as a way of forging national identity and bringing together the various groups under the umbrella of the Senegalese nation.”
How could the United States have benefited from the concept of teranga in its history with enslavement and civil rights?
1. Why would you like to travel to Taiwan?
2. Learning a world language needs the courage to go out of your comfort zone, especially when you travel to an unfamiliar environment and face a real-life situation. What do you plan to do to walk out your comfort zone and maximize this great learning opportunity to improve your language skills and deepen your understanding of the local culture?
3. Teamwork, reliability, and self-discipline are essential for everything we do before the trip and on the trip, such as using our trip seminar time effectively, organizing fundraising events, meeting the deadlines and following the trip rules, etc. How do you envision your role and your contribution to make this trip successful?