This past October, thirty-five students from Paul Martin’s freshman TAP seminar on Canada and his English 180 Canadian literature course, along with fifteen students from Professor Jeff Ayres’ Canadian Politics class at St. Michael’s College, participated in one of the Canadian Studies Program's most memorable Ottawa field trips so far.

An annual UVM tradition that dates back well over fifty years, the field trip to the Canadian capital includes a visit to Canada’s parliament, where the students watch the daily Question Period and later meet with Members of Parliament representing Canada’s main political parties. The students impressed the politicians with their excellent questions and had a great time learning more about Canada’s parliamentary system, something which the Canadian Studies program hopes to build on in future Political Science courses devoted to Canadian politics. In fact, although the trip includes visits to the National Gallery of Canada, the Museum of Civilisation, and a hockey game, most students cited the visit to Parliament as their favorite experience in Canada.

The enthusiasm of our students for Canada and Canadian politics also caught the attention of the national media. Two students, Amanda Hower and Calla Bischoff, along with Paul Martin, appeared on CBC Newsworld, Canada’s main 24-hour television news network, in two separate live interviews for Newsworld's morning show. The students had a great experience at the CBC studios in Ottawa and it was exciting to be able to tell Canadians from coast to coast about the UVM Canadian Studies Program on live national television.

• Download the interview with Amanda Hower and Paul Martin from the morning of October 20, 2006.

• Download the interview with Calla Bischoff and Paul Martin from the morning of October 21, 2006.