28, Hrushevskogo St.

Zdovbytsya, 35709
Rivne region
21 October 2020

Prof. Mykhailo Bilynskyi

English Philology Department
Ivan Franko National University of Lviv
1, Universytetska St.
Lviv, 79000

Dear Professor Bilynskyi,

I am a fourth-year student of the Faculty of Foreign Languages at the Lviv University.

The years I have spent as a student of this faculty have been extremely productive and highly
inspiring. However, as there is no limit for excellency, I am confident that there are still many
ways in which we can improve the studying process of the students of the English
department. Therefore I am writing in order to provide a student insight and suggest some
solutions based on my personal experience with the curriculum and organizational process.

The first problem that I would like to address is the lack of clear communication of
the department with the student body. As a first-year student, I found myself quite at lost
when I first faced the university’s policies and studying process. I did not know where to find
the information I needed and had to scramble for any and all details I could find. It would be
a great idea to organize an introductory meeting for first-years and perhaps even give out
useful handbooks that would help them out during their adjustment period.

Another problem that the students of our department face are the unrealistic amounts
of literature for required reading. Of course, national and worldwide literature is of the utmost
importance to the students of our faculty. But there should be another way of approaching
this subject. Perhaps “divide and conquer” is just the right way for this. The aim should be
the quality of the knowledge and not its quantity.

And last but not least, is the problem with the way online classes are organized.
Online learning is definitely new for our university and adapting has been quite a challenge
for both students and teachers. Of course, online classes can not substitute in-person studying
but they can and must be improved. What they lack is the interpersonal connections and
elements of communication. Perhaps modifying the curriculum in order to include more
group-based task could be a way out of this. I am convinced that we will make online-
learning more effective and entertaining as long as we collaborate and listen to each other.

Being a student of our university and especially of our faculty is an honour and a
privilege that I certainly appreciate. University is not just a place where you acquire your
diploma. It is a community of like-minded people that appreciate academic learning and
strive to better themselves. And that is exactly why it is our common job to try and make it as
good of a place as we can. I hope my suggestions will be useful. Looking forward to hearing
from you!
Yours sincerely,
Oleksandra Boyarchuk!