Festival of Learning

Open Session Limited to 50 Participants (First-Come, First-In). This session takes place in a large ballroom environment, with one other session happening concurrently at the opposite end of the room. (Area 3A)

Praxis was, for Aristotle, one of the three main activities of human beings. In language learning, while enhanced output (i.e production, or Poïesis in Aristotelian term) has been highly viewed as an essential element towards reaching fluency, the actions (that is the process, or praxis) related to these opportunities are just as important.

The ubiquity of technologies, in particular mobile technologies, is making the practical experience of languaging an even more critical element of what it means to learn a language today. In this session, we will focus on several applications that can promote a practical and interactive study of languages in a view to enhancing communication and collaboration.

Grounding our praxis in a sociocultural theory of learning, our session will first present the basic precepts of technology-mediated language learning and then engage participants in practical and interactive exercises to test and play with applications. iPads will be provided for the session but participants are also encouraged to bring their own device. 

Presenters
Catherine Caws, Faculty Member, French Department, University of Victoria 
Bernadette Perry, PhD student, University of Victoria