What challenge inspired this recipe?
Learning the local language often proves to be challenging but very rewarding and essential to create real bonds with local people. Of course, each volunteer will have their own learning process, that is why it’s interesting to have a wide range of tools and availabilities presented to them to support and encourage them in this challenge.
Ingredients :
– OLS tutorial
– French tips and tricks
Step by step guide
Before the activity:
1) Contact with local services providing French courses or conversation tables
2) Ask the volunteers beforehand if they wish to join regular courses/ meetings. In parallel, the coordinating organization needs to crosscheck with the hosting organization it the possibilities would fit in the schedule of the volunteers.
3) Send out the EU Academy tutorial (see material): help to access the EU academy platform.
4) Send out the document “French tips and tricks” (list of useful resources to learn French, created by one of our previous ESC volunteers)
During the activity:
1) During the welcoming time, remind the volunteers about all these tools and all the practical info for the appointment for the physical classes. Depending on the context: Raise awareness about the fact that they shouldn’t expect to have individual lessons as the free courses organized in the region are often proposed by local volunteers for groups. Encourage them to be proactive (prepare questions and materials to these gatherings) and to attend the classes if they signed up for them.
2) Check if they could make good use of the online linguistic tool provided by the EU Commission. If not, propose alternatives (ex: in Belgium, website “Wallangues” OR duolingo/ babbel).
Important to highlight!Having a wide range of tools and availabilities presented to them to support and encourage them in this challenge is for sure a good start but the volunteers need to have high intrinsic motivations, over which we do not have a hold. However, in parallel, the individual support provided during the ESC activity (on-arrival/ mid-term discussions and seminars) can contribute to reinforcing the general motivations. |
Before you start cooking, keep in mind…
Before the activity starts, the volunteers are often very busy with administrative duties- together with the fact that such an experience is certainly loaded emotionally- there is little space left for the learning of the local language beforehand.
During the activity: there is a high risk that volunteers stop to attend the language classes after a while without informing the local service (having consequences on the long-term partnerships). To prevent this, we should reinforce the idea of commitment before it starts.
