Language Exchange Sessions and Second Language Teaching

A Faculty of Arts & Science Teaching and Learning Community of Practice

Developing Students’ Verbal Fluency, Self-Confidence and Intercultural Skills Through Spanish/English Virtual Language Exchange Sessions with Native Speakers
Juan Carlos Rocha Osornio, Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, Spanish and Portuguese

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, language teachers have always had to come up with creative ways to have their students practice their oral skills in a meaningful way. This is particularly important considering that learning a foreign language is often accompanied by feelings of anxiety that can potentially hinder the learning process. While virtual classes have brought new challenges, they nevertheless offer a valuable opportunity for developing students’ verbal fluency, self-confidence, and intercultural skills. This session will provide an overview of the Spanish/English Virtual Language Exchange Sessions that were created in response to the pandemic, so that students taking Spanish in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at the University of Toronto and students of English at Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Mexico, could interact and learn from one another while creating a sense of community.

Expanding the Classroom via Educational Platforms: How TalkAbroad Can Help Create Meaningful Assignments in L2 Classrooms
Stefana Gargova, Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, Germanic Languages and Literatures

Providing meaningful and compelling forms of practice, assessment and evaluation of students’ oral communicative skills has always been a struggle in Second Language Teaching, particularly when learning happens outside of the communities and places the target language is spoken. A new educational platform called TalkAbroad is offering a solution for filling this gap. In this presentation I will share my experience with the platform, as well as demonstrate various assignment options and share student feedback.

Register via Zoom

The Faculty of Arts & Science Teaching & Learning Community of Practice (CoP) was established in 2015 to create a collegial forum for faculty and instructors to meet and share teaching practices and strategies across fields and disciplines. This CoP is coordinated by Andrew Dicks (Professor, Teaching Stream and Associate Chair, Undergraduate, Department of Chemistry).