Italian version
eTandem is a form of peer-to-peer learning at a distance. Students can deepen their linguistic and cultural knowledge (both oral and written) by using several tools (videoconferences, WhatApps, Facebook, Instagram, Skype, chat, e-mail, etc…).
CLA (University of Padova Linguistic Center) in close cooperation with the International Relations Division organizes the eTandem project twice a year, prior to international students’ arrival.
eTandem for Incoming International Students
The eTandem project has been recognised as part of E+VE Erasmus+ Virtual Exchange (https://europa.eu/youth/erasmusvirtual), a pilot initiative of the European Commission (2018-2020).
With the “eTandem Learning – Pre-Mobility Project“, the University of Padua is among the 15 winners of the European Language Label 2016, a prestigious prize awarded by the European Commission to the most innovative projects that can contribute to language learning through effective didactic practices.
Who can participate in this project
This eTandem is intended as a pre-mobility project. It involves Italian students of the University of Padova and international students who are going to come to Padova for the following Autumn/Winter and Spring/Summer semesters.
Objectives
- practice English, Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese and German as linguae francae in a Facebook/Moodle community and the target language in an one-to-one exchange with their own partners
- promote inclusive multilingualism
- enhance Soft Skills
- develop linguistic, digital and intercultural competences
- facilitate the Erasmus/Mundus students’ integration
- cultivate curiosity towards other’s culture and active listening
- boost critical thinking
- stimulate interest in global issues
- create cohesion among participants
Languages
Our eTandem project is an online exchange which includes 3 types of communication: many-to-many in a Facebook/Moodle community where Italian, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and German will be used as linguae francae; one-to-one communication where the time must be equally split between Italian and other target languages (in this way both students can benefit from the exchange) and a few-to-few communication where a collaborative activity should be carried out.
eTandem length
It lasts 8-10 weeks. After their arrival in Padova, international students can finally meet their eTandem partners and will be asked if they want to continue a face-to-face exchange.
Description of the project
The University of Padova Language Center is in charge of pairing incoming Erasmus /Mundus students and Italian students who will enroll in the project. Each group should be composed by 50 dyads at maximum.
Students will be given their partner’s contact information and will get in touch autonomously. The subsequent sessions will be decided, in terms of timing and tools, by the students themselves. During these sessions, partners can share personal information, discuss topics of their choice or suggested by the tutors in the Facebook/Moodle community in their target language.
Enrolments
Registration is open from 7 to 22 November 2022 via the following links:
Platforms
Activities
All students could also join a Facebook/Moodle community where intercultural topics are addressed either in Italian, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese or German used as linguae francae. This social area implies an exchange on a wider basis: it serves to put all participants in touch with other students and cultures involved in the eTandem project so that they can experience an enriching multilingual and multicultural context.
Info about how to move the first steps in an eTandem project will be given in our Moodle platform (elearning.unipd.it/cla), while an access on Facebook community will be granted through a direct link to a secret group.
In our Moodle platform, students are also asked to keep a diary where to track what they discussed in every session (both individual and collective), highlight problems and positive aspects, and note what they have been most fascinated by, both on a linguistic and cultural basis.
Certificate of participation and badges
Students are asked to hand in at least 1 diary, participate to at least 8 Facebook discussions, write a final small essay collecting their reflections on the overall exchange, participate to at least 3 synchronous online sessions and a collaborative activity. Lastly, students will receive 2 online feedback forms that they need to fill in by the end of the eTandem project.
Students who are punctual in returning the feedback form, the diaries and the essay will be given a certificate of participation and a badge*.
*A digital badge is an online representation of a skill you have earned.
Contacts
