Second Annual Instructional Innovation Conference Teaching languages with iChat Giovanna De Appolonia Department of Romance Studies

Video Conference for Language Learning between professor and student in distance language courses between two students from different countries, one of whom is a native speaker between a whole language class and one or more native speakers

Experience A A homework assignment An in-class review of the questionnaire The videoconference –Students asked the native speaker personal questions –Students asked cultural related questions

Experience A: Students’ Feedback “Enjoyed hearing her speak.” “Exercise was great!” “Neat to hold a basic conversation with someone in Italy.” “Interactive and engaging exercise!” “Taking the language outside of the class makes it feel more real.” “Good way to practice with speaking and listening.” “Being in Italian I, there was a lot that I did not understand, but I was also surprised by how much I did understand! ”

Experience B A homework assignment An in-class review of the questionnaire The videoconference –Students asked general questions –Students asked food related questions –Native speaker asked questions to the students

Video

Positive Results Allows direct contact with the target country Allows native speakers to show things A good way to practice with pronunciation Can be held on regular in-class hours By videotaping the video chat students can evaluate their communication skills Can be experimented at ALL LEVELS of language learning

Limitations Technical problems and failure of connection Expensive technical equipment needed on both sides Different time zone between Italy and the US Lack of people to interview