George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Technology with a Human Touch Distance Learning in Persian and Pashto Ajmal Sherzuye Homeira Bahadorani

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Foreign Service Institute Primary training institution for the U.S. State Department

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State School of Language Studies Teaches approximately 70 languages to American diplomats and eligible family members Develops distance learning courses in several languages such as Arabic, Chinese, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Persian, and Pashto.

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Distance Language Learning Students Located at over 300 posts worldwide Have full-time jobs No mandated training time

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State A 28-week course divided in 2 parts Self-paced course Students spend average of 4-6 hours a week

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Main Features Course Materials on CD-ROM Language presented via audio, text, photos, video Bilingual Glossary: Pashto, English

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Course Structure Present material through readings and dialogues Practice material through a variety of activities Produce language responding to prompts and talking to the Mentor on the telephone

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Flow of Contents in Each Unit Unit Objectives Reading and Dialogue/Video Reading Activities Grammar Activities Lexical Activities Culture Notes Glossary Language Resources

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Pashto Distance Learning

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Alphabet

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Dialogue

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Additional Features Cultural notes Language Resources Weekly session with Mentor over telephone

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Basic Greetings

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Presentation of the Verb to be

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Fill in the Blank

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Directions

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Drag and drop activities

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Students not only spend time studying CD-ROM-based content… Students not only spend time studying CD-ROM-based content… …but they are also mentored by native speaker FSI instructors …but they are also mentored by native speaker FSI instructors Persian Introductory Course

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Communicating with Students Telephone Telephone Forum Forum Chat Chat Weekly to students Weekly to students

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Chat

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Forum

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Weekly group Weekly group

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Purpose of Telephone Calls Directed practice (students are given work ahead of time to prepare) Directed practice (students are given work ahead of time to prepare) Review of past material Review of past material Conversation practice Conversation practice Role-playing exercises Role-playing exercises Student progress/level evaluation Student progress/level evaluation Motivational Motivational

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State For some students, the phone call from the mentor is the only time during the course that they will converse with a native speaker of the language. For some students, the phone call from the mentor is the only time during the course that they will converse with a native speaker of the language.

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Telephone Calls are very helpful in: Providing immediate feedback to students. Providing immediate feedback to students. Allowing students to self-assess their language ability (based on what they are able to say). Allowing students to self-assess their language ability (based on what they are able to say). Giving structure to the course of study. Giving structure to the course of study. Helping the students pace themselves during the course. Helping the students pace themselves during the course. Helping mentors assign students appropriate follow up work. Helping mentors assign students appropriate follow up work. building a community of learners building a community of learners

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Purposes of Telephone Calls Directed practice (students are given work ahead of time to prepare) Directed practice (students are given work ahead of time to prepare) Review of past material Review of past material Conversation practice Conversation practice Role-playing exercises Role-playing exercises Student progress/level evaluation Student progress/level evaluation Motivational Motivational Providing immediate feedback to students Providing immediate feedback to students Allowing students to self-assess their language ability (based on what they are able to say). Allowing students to self-assess their language ability (based on what they are able to say). Giving structure to the course of study Giving structure to the course of study Helping the students pace themselves during the course Helping the students pace themselves during the course Helping mentors assign students appropriate follow up work Helping mentors assign students appropriate follow up work Students will converse with a native speaker of the language. Students will converse with a native speaker of the language.

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Mentors Take the Initiative to Keep Students on Track Using various communication tools

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Coaching Strategies for Mentors Praise and encourage Praise and encourage Offer help Offer help Address student by name Address student by name Nudge without nagging; prod without pushing Nudge without nagging; prod without pushing Use “active listening” strategies Use “active listening” strategies Engage the student – follow up with a question or a task Engage the student – follow up with a question or a task Nurturing positive feedback that keeps students engaged Nurturing positive feedback that keeps students engaged

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Praise and encourage Praise and encourage Offer help Offer help Address student by name Address student by name Nudge without nagging; prod without pushing Nudge without nagging; prod without pushing Use “active listening” strategies Use “active listening” strategies Engage the student – follow up with a question or a task Engage the student – follow up with a question or a task Nurturing positive feedback that keeps students engaged Nurturing positive feedback that keeps students engaged

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State The Results 80% of the students completed the pilot session 80% of the students completed the pilot session Students gave positive feedback concerning the mentoring… Students gave positive feedback concerning the mentoring…

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Student Feedback What was most helpful about the course? 85% of students responded: The mentor

George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center School of Language Studies Foreign Service Institute U.S. Department of State Student Feedback “The assistance of instructor, [Name] who kept me motivated, answered all my questions, and worked around my often changing schedule. She sent exercises by that specifically addressed pronunciation and conjugation problems I was having, and she sent rapid rote lists that are extremely valuable.” “The assistance of instructor, [Name] who kept me motivated, answered all my questions, and worked around my often changing schedule. She sent exercises by that specifically addressed pronunciation and conjugation problems I was having, and she sent rapid rote lists that are extremely valuable.”