French-German Tandem Courses for young graduates in the cultural sector First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Who are we ? An independent inter-governmental organisation with an international status fostering French-German cooperation Founded according to the Contract of Elysées, on the 22th January 1963 by Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer Sponsored by the french and the german governement Structure : A French-German executive board: Dr. Markus Ingenlath und Béatrice Angrand 5 Departments 70 employees working in „bi-national“ teams in 2 locations, Paris and Berlin First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Aims and purposes To deepen the relationships between young people To reflect on the different cultures To develop social and intercultural competence To understand the importance of their special alliance in Europe To arouse interest in discovering the other language To strengthen the autonomy of young people To impart the French-German co-operation model to others To be a reference center for the government of both countries First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Some facts Since our foundation in 1963, we have made possible… For more than 8 Million young people from France and Germany between 3 and 30 years old to be acquainted with each other To support around youth meetings We cooperate with More than Partners. Each year we support… More than youth meetings, with around participants. First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Language promotion Language skills are not a pre-condition to take part in a project. Any young person who is interested in a project can take part Our aim : increasing language awareness and language skills. The youth exchange is the context, and the better cooperation between the two states is the aim Language learning during a youth meeting is not comparable to formal language learning in an educational institution: Non-formal education. First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

The ‘bi-national’ courses for young graduates in the field of culture. These are For young people between University and working life For those who want to have work experience abroad To develop intercultural, language and professional skills To build intercultural und sustainable professional networks : Empower the cooperation between cultural institutions in France and Germany First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Young graduates attending our tandem language courses have Personal expectations towards their career Heterogeneous language skills (A2 to C2) Heterogeneous professional profiles (bookstore, history, fine arts…) High knowledge level and selfconfidence in their business More or less intercultural awareness Large expectations for the time after the course. Such as :  managing everyday life alone abroad  being efficient in business situations First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

The requirements of the tandem language course are Language/intercultural courses spanning two weeks (for editors) or three weeks (for museum curators and translators) The course is done partly in Germany and partly in France All participants stay together in a hostel during the whole course Two tutors, one French and one German accompany the course 5 hours/day : guided tandem learning Organisation of meetings with professionals and visits to institutions First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

The challenges Participants come with high expectations of personal development Their idea about language learning is not always skill oriented Sometimes very unrealistic expectations about what they can achieve in the short time They are not aware of the (real) purpose behind the project : connecting people for a united states of Europe Personal aims are not totaly equal to institutional aims First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

More challenges To understand the tandem approach and be ready to work with a partner every day Being able to give as much as you receive False expectations towards the tutors To define in detail their personal learning objectives  Is Tandem serious enough ? Is it the right method for me ? First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Some assets Specialised glossary : professional terminology, already prepared and verified Professional visits and meetings prepared in tandem complete the course programme Learners spend the whole day together with not just structured and guided tandem sequences but also a lot of informal time to communicate with each other (sharing a room) Two tutors, familiar with the topic and ready to coach a tandem process First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Some solutions to challenges faced Introduction to tandem Provide specific tasks Use simulations as preparation for the professional situation (the path of creating a book, organizing an exhibition) Individual coaching (Lernberatung) especially for the learning process Mononational working groups for some questions like grammatic First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Assessment ? Complementarity of all moments during the course, but very intensiv « breaks are not real breaks because we continue speaking and working all the time, I know that is the intention, but it is so exhausting » Sometime the feeling of success is coming during the free time « I realised all that I had learned, as I was able to have a deep conversation with other participants » General feeling of increased skills at the end of the course by almost all participants Very good group atmosphere at the end of the course : Community feeling After the professional stay : Increased awareness about own strategies to learn a langage First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

What we do better now Informations in the run up to the course Analysing the needs of participants Balance between guiding/encouraging autonomy Better tasks for training different skills in different situations (understanding, writing, taking part to a conversation, intercultural competence…) The right balance of reflection about the learning process  Tandem is perfekt ! First international Meeting on language learning in Tandem – Miami –

Anne Jardin Deutsch-Französisches Jugendwerk/ Office Franco-allemand pour la Jeunesse Molkenmarkt Berlin Germany Tel.: Thank you for your attention !