Virtual Vendée! An Online Course for French Teachers

French teachers can earn three hours of professional development graduate credit from home this summer in a unique class called Virtual Vendée. French 930 will be taught entirely on line from June 1- 30. Teachers will practice French, gain valuable cultural insights, and have access to a wealth of authentic digital materials created by WVU students who are studying abroad in Vendée, France, during the same period. The virtual participants will interact through two sources. First, a series of readings pertaining to current cultural topics of general and local interests ranging, from “How French families deal with the dreaded bac exam” to “How the town of les Sables d’Olonne will address ecological issues with its world-class beach, how French teenagers handle alcohol, etc.). Additional materials will be produced by the students in France, in the form of video podcasts that can be downloaded to a computer or an Ipod. Class activities will consist of exchanges between the two classes, virtual and in France: message boards, voice boards, in addition to traditional forms of language instruction. To register for the class contact Extended Learning.

For information on the class contact the instructors at Valerie.Lastinger@mail.wvu.edu or Michael.Lastinger@mail.wvu.edu.

To see the Vendée website visit http://www.as.wvu.edu/mlastinger/vendee/. To see last year’s Vodcasts visit: http://www.as.wvu.edu/mlastinger/vendee/2007/tableau-pod.htm.