The course and the project behind
As a distinctively European project, “Lingua 2: Swedish” has involved six countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands and Sweden) and a large number of project partners. It was started in October 2001 and was finished (after a 5-month project extension) March 1st 2004.
In terms of products, the project produced two online course packages (a total of 6 modules), 2 CD-ROMs (pronunciation, films and songs), a teacher guide for the courses, and various information materials. The project has given a high priority to spoken language and the results from the students are good.
It is a comprehensive course consisting of six thematically linked modules with a general focus on context and student-activity. In contrast to much internet-delivered education the material is rich in pedagogically motivated audio, pictures and links. These elements are integrated with more traditional elements such as grammar exercises. There is a great deal of student-teacher interaction (through voice chat, email, exercises etc.), which is also reflected in the time required per student. But there is also quite a deal of student-student interaction through assigned “cooperative tasks”. The CD-ROM material adds films, songs, pronunciation exercises and a small pronunciation course. The project has resulted in a material that is both very comprehensive and of high quality.
A basic story is developed throughout the material. The main thread – Nathalie going to Sweden on an academic exchange program and spending a semester there – is very important to the course. It is not incorporated into everything but it has a strong integrative function, helps to create a rich and interesting course, and facilitates a consistent forward movement in the course. The storyline is also grounded in contemporary culture which is refreshing and helps to provide a sense of authenticity.
Student comments
The web course is successful in creating a communicative and cultural context. This is evidenced from student comments: “It is fun that the course touches on so many themes, also very mundane and useful matters.” “The exercises are fun and varied. Also you learn a bit about Swedish culture, which I quite enjoy.”
A native English speaker who has recently had traditional training in Swedish says: “The course consistently places language in the contexts of both themes (most often related to the university level of the course such as filling in application forms or going shopping) and in relation to the social, cultural and climatic settings of Sweden. Links to related websites and the Tandem section provide further contact with the language in the living world.”
Comments from the external evaluator
“The use of external resources is impressive – it includes a train services website (booking ticket), a clickable map and links to various places/attractions in Stockholm, shopping mall websites, pictures of food, mushrooms and relatives in a pictorial dictionary, an exercise where students are to search the net for typical Swedish food, links to maps, and an exercise where students are to use a postcard website to produce a fictive postcard (to be sent to the teacher). The web course has a rich media, links and a varied content, is very attractively presented and has a good “feeling” to it. What is very evident in the material is the honest concern about and care for the students.
In conclusion the following achievements of the project should be emphasized: the high degree of pedagogical contextualization, the attractive and varied presentation, the careful integration of rich media and links, the success in combining pedagogically sound elements, the focus on spoken language, and a solid final product. The project group can definitely be said to have succeeded and the prospects for propagation and development are good.”