Tartu College facilitates a rich educational and cultural programming all year around. The program is delivered together with VEMU/Estonian Museum Canada focusing on four pillars: history, culture, language, arts & science. All VEMU programs offered in English are available to Tartu College student residents. 

Tartu College’s key mandate is to promote, preserve and increase the knowledge of the Estonian experience in Canada. Tartu College with the Chair of Estonian Studies Foundation supports the Estonian language courses at University of Toronto Department of Slavic Languages and Literature.

We are home to the Academy for Lifelong Learning Toronto program that facilitates peer-led study and dialogue. Together with the Academy of Lifelong Learning Toronto student bursaries are offered to Tartu College student residents.

VEMU 

Keep an eye on VEMU programming and participate here.

        

University of Toronto Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures

Learn Estonian for Both Credit and Enjoyment!

With growing popularity, the University of Toronto continues to offer an Estonian language course as part of its curriculum. Although  the university is generally back to in-person learning, occasionally some classes may run via zoom if the students request it.  Students from all Toronto area universities (Toronto, York and Metropolitan) can take the course for credit, after getting permission from their home university to transfer the credit from the University of Toronto. After receiving permission, students from other institutions must pay a fee and submit an application to Woodsworth College to receive a University of Toronto student number and register. You can also consider auditing the course for personal fulfillment if it sounds interesting and too good to pass up!

This year, the intermediate level course (EST 200) will be offered. Prerequsites are either completion of EST 100 or some fluency in Estonian and the permission of the instructor. 

The course will continue to build essential Estonian vocabulary, grammatical  and communicative competence through a variety of reading, writing, listening and speaking activities. Popular songs, poetry, structured and semi-structured dialogue are among the various tools for achieving these objectives. This will evolve to themed sessions using language for travel in Estonia, savouring the language of Estonian cuisine, and the lyrics of popular, folk and classical Estonian music. 

If you have ties to the Estonian heritage and culture and have wanted to strengthen these bonds, this is a great opportunity to get a better appreciation of all things Estonian by enhancing your knowledge of the Estonian language. If you know of people who are held back from a stronger bond with their Estonian heritage by their language skills, why not recommend this course to them?

Estonian is an interesting language for its own sake. Estonian is different from most spoken languages in Europe. It belongs to the Finno-Ugric language family, which also includes Finnish and Hungarian. The role of vowels in Estonian is among the greatest in any European language, whereby a string of vowels can form meaningful words around the frame of few consonants. It also has the additional vowels õ, ä, ö, ü. If you have trouble with the following tongue twisters, then this course is for you. Jäääär (edge of the ice), Õueala (courtyard), Kõueöö (night of the thunder), Puuõõnsus (hollow of the tree), Töö-öö (working night). 

For more information on the language, please click here.

The instructor for this course is Marju Toomsalu. Marju is a passionate advocate for language and welcomes the opportunity to combine her love of language with teaching. She inspires her students to discover the nuances of understanding that language variations hide and offer, and also enjoy selected aspects of comparative linguistics using simple everyday terms. 

If you are interested in taking this course please email Marju (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and look the course up in the University of Toronto’s Faculty timetable or call the Department of Slavic  Languages and Literature. 

Information for auditors can be found here.

Classes begin on September 7, 2023. 

This course is a key part of the Estonian Studies Program at the University Of Toronto. It is made possible through the generous financial support of Tartu College and Chair of Estonian Studies Foundation in recognition of the importance of the Estonian Studies Program to the Estonian community.

Academy for Lifelong Learning Toronto

For more than 25 years, the Academy for Lifelong Learning Toronto has attracted members who are intellectually curious, interested in exploring and understanding the world, sharing ideas, and meeting others who share their interests. Our membership is typically around 400 members, with about 40-50 choices of workshops. Members of the Academy enjoy:

• The convenience of attending events on weekdays, at centrally located venues, such as Tartu
• Workshops on a range of topics in the arts, sciences, and current affairs - generally offered every two weeks.  Workshops are led by member-facilitators, and topics are researched and presented by members of the class
• Academy Forums – offered alternate weeks Sept. through Nov. and Jan. through Mar., these two-hour sessions provide an opportunity for members and guests to hear presentations on a wide range of topics and to interact with one another and outside experts in an informal learning environment
• Spring Talks – held Wednesday mornings through Apr. and May, well-known experts present thought-provoking talks on a broad range of topics for members and guests
• Exploring the city – members meet weekly throughout the autumn and spring to explore Toronto’s neighbourhoods and connect over lunch

We invite you to learn more about the Academy by exploring our website: https://allto.ca/

The Tartu College Student Residence Scholarship


The Tartu College Student Residence Scholarship (TCSRS), sponsored by the Academy for Lifelong Learning and Tartu College Student Residence, supports ongoing education at Tartu College—an institution focused on the continuous learning journey of its residents. As a not-for-profit entity, Tartu College actively backs the Estonian Museum Canada, Estonian Life Newspaper, and Estonian Studies at the university level. The Academy for Lifelong Learning Toronto, housed at Tartu College, is esteemed for providing stimulating educational opportunities to retired professionals. The TCSRS aims to reinvest in the Tartu community by awarding funds to full-term residents engaged in impactful initiatives. Recipients are encouraged to leverage their projects, events, or activities to contribute to the Tartu College community, which includes student residents, the Estonian Museum Canada program, Estonian Life/Eesti Elu Newspaper, and the Academy for Lifelong Learning. Scholarship amounts range from CAD 500 to 2000.

Read more about the TCSRS Criteria