Difficulties of students at the start of classes

The telecollaborative partners exchange their points of view on the start of university courses in the two countries by creating a blog entry.

Institution reporting the task:

Language of task instructions:

English

Target Group:

Any

Level:

B1
B2
C1

References and acknowledgements:

None

Type:

Information exchange

Estimated Duration:

2 sessions

Topic:

Problems of society

Tags:

university
students
problems of society

Acknowledgements:

None

Language Configurations:

Bilingual

Language(s) that the task can be used in:

Any

Dominant language production:

Writing/reading synchronous
Writing/reading asynchronous

Target Competences:

Language competence
Intercultural skills

Specific pedagogical objectives:

Development of students interest in cultural similarities and differences

Suggested Communication Tools:

Social Networks

Suggested Resources:

None

Instructions:

Phase 1 (preparation through the instructors):

– create a closed forum (Ning) in which the telecollaborative partners publish their texts and their comments

– form pairs between two students of the same countries


Phase 2 (research):

– Ask the pairs to do research on the problems the students of their university generally encounter at the beginning of classes and list them

For example: Rise of enrollment fee, searching for accommodation, finding a student job


Phase 3 (production):

On the blog they individually create a text between 100 and 150 words (depending on the level) which presents the sum of these problems

– The telecollaborative partners need to present at least three problems they might encounter

– They need to illustrate these problems through examples / personal anecdotes or by referring to witnesses

– They position themselves on the difficulty or non-difficulty of this situation for the students


Phase 4 (exchange):

After a phase of correction and linguistic improvement, the telecollaborative partners react individually on the blog by commenting on the differences which exist between the two countries


Phase 5 (wrap-up in class):


Assess the accomplishment of the task instructions (content, structure, language) and the differences between the students’ situations of every country involved

Learner Texts:

None

Document related to the task:

None

Criteria for Completion:

The telecollaborative partners could discover my opinion on the student situation during the period when university classes start through a text which outlines at least three problems. They asked questions or reacted by commenting on the blog.

Comments and suggestions:

None

Author/copyright:

Le français en Première Ligne (2010-2011) Grenoble-Curitiba, tâche 2 « Les difficultés des étudiants en début d’année »