The Five College Center for the
Study of World Languages’ Model
for Independent Language Study
Elizabeth HD Mazzocco
Professor of Italian, Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures
Director, Five College Center for the Study of World Languages
Chair, Five College Arabic Program
Five Colleges, Incorporated is the consortium of Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke, Smith Colleges
and the University of Massachusetts Amherst
The Five College Consortium
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Amherst College
Hampshire College
Mount Holyoke College
Smith College
University of Massachusetts Amherst
The Five College Center for the Study of World
Languages
• Sponsored equally by the five institutions
• Coordinating body for Less Commonly Taught
Language (LCTL) study in the consortium
• Combines individual language initiatives into
consortial endeavor
Five Colleges, Incorporated: Collaboration for Maximum Impact
20% contribution = 100% positive results
UMass
Smith
Amherst
Five College
Mentored and
Independent
Language
Mount Holyoke
Hampshire
The Mentored Language Program
• Paradigm for structured, independent language
acquisition
• Emphasizes all four primary language skills –
speaking, listening, reading, writing
• Allows students to study LCTLs when enrollment is
limited
• Is cost effective
• Utilizes accessible pool of language providers
• Allows broad LCTL access to undergraduates
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Mentored Language Program Paradigm
• Individual tutorials with a mentor (one or two 30minute sessions per week)
• Small group conversation sessions with native
speaker
• Significant amount of weekly independent study
based on structured study guides
• Student self assessment of learning process
• Coordinating Body that orchestrates the process
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Components of Mentored Language Program
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Coordinating Body
Student
Mentor
Conversation Partner
Study Guides
Self-Assessments
Homework Portfolio
Examining Professor
Written Evaluation
Oral Evaluation
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Coordinating Body
• Admits students
• Provides access to Study Guides
• Hires and trains the mentors and the conversation
partners
• Meets mentors individually each week for discussion of
students and lesson planning
• Holds student homework portfolios
• Reads and records student self-assessments
• Organizes the final exams
• Calculates the final grades
• Records the final grades
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Student
• Self-starter who can complete tasks with minimal supervision
– Can organize the academic week to dedicate consistent, daily
amounts of time to language study
– Is prepared to self drill and create imaginary scenes and
dialogues to practice the language
– Can anticipate how the concept/vocabulary in the text
materials will need to be used and can create environments
for self practice
– Has the ability to self assess and recognize which learning
strategies are most fruitful
– Understands how to self correct and analyze errors or trouble
spots
– Can form coherent questions for the tutor
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Who is The Mentor?
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Educated native speaker
BA required / MA preferred
Training in American Language Pedagogies
Training in ESL or target language preferred
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
What does the Mentor do?
Grades Homework
Uses English and the target language during the tutorial
Responds to student questions
Does not “lecture”
Explains grammatical issues
Explains syntax issues
Provides cultural insight and historical perspective (often in
English)
• Meets weekly with Coordinating body
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http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Mentoring Session (Tutorial)
• Language of interaction is English and target
language
• Student brings questions to tutor
• Student and mentor look over student’s homework
• Mentor responds to student queries
• Mentor spot checks student’s retention and
understanding of material
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Conversation Partner
• Can be educated international undergraduate or
graduate student
• Can be a mentor
• Files weekly report with Coordinating body
• Prepares for session using Conversation Partner
Preparation Guides (language and lesson specific)
• Serves as cultural conduit
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Conversation Session
• Takes place in target language only
• Includes role plays, conversations, and descriptions –
any device that engages small student groups in
speaking practice
• Does NOT include grammatical explanation
• Provides opportunity for students to actively use the
language and accompanying culturally specific
gestures and body language
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Five College Independent Language Program
Study Guides
• Fully developed, academically sound curriculum
• Available online http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
• Language availability varies yearly
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Study Guide Components
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Study Goals
Materials
Multimedia Materials
Getting Started
Assignments for Independent Study
Review
Homework to Hand In at the Tutorial
Conversation Session Preparation Guide
Self Assessment
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Homework Portfolio
• Housed in Coordinating Center
• Contains
– scans of all graded homework and/or video
portfolios for each student
– the weekly self assessment forms of each student
– the final written evaluation and the final oral
evaluation score sheets
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Self Assessment
• e-filed each week before 9am Monday morning by all
students
• Encourages students to reflect on the language
learning styles and tools that work for them
• Helps students strategize to make their learning
experience more fruitful
• Provides Coordinating Body with feedback from
students on their learning experience
• Allows Coordinating Body to be proactive and help
the student before an issue becomes a problem
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Professional Examiner
• Professor of the target language or native-speaking
language professor
• Frequently external to academic institution
• Serves as consultant for Coordinating Body
• Creates and administers final oral evaluations
• Given stipend on a per evaluation basis
• Occasionally assists with placement if feasible
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Final Written Evaluation
• Created by mentor or external examiner
• Is a pro-chievement* evaluation, based only on what
student has studied
• Graded by mentors or external examiners
* Term coined by NASILP (National Association of Self-Instructional Language
Programs) to denote test that is a mix of a proficiency and an achievement exam
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
The Final Oral Evaluation
• Designed and Administered by professor of the target
language (either internal or external)
• 20-30 minute one—on-one oral either in person or via
video
• Is an evaluation of student’s ability to carry on
sustained conversation covering material studied
during the term
• Is not a written exam given in oral form
• Graded by examining professor following Five
College grading guidelines
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Benefits of Independent Language Programs
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Academically rigorous
Cost effective
Utilizes accessible pool of language providers
Allows maximum language offerings for LCTLs
Flexible and fluid
Highly individualized
All courses can be offered all semesters
No student is left behind because s/he is off-sequence
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Resources Available Online Through the Five College
Center for the Study of World Languages
• Five College Center for the Study of World Languages website
• The LangMedia Resource
• These resources are made possible through the generous
support of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The US
Department of Education, The National Security Education
Program, and Five Colleges, Incorporated.
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
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Five College Center for the Study of World
Languages website
• http://www.umass.edu/fclang
• Information portal for Five College students
interested in independent language study
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Includes:
• Program and course descriptions
• Schedules
• Application forms
• Registration guidelines
• Mentored Language course online orientation
• Five College international and regional studies certificate programs
• Five College language departments
• Language resources on the web
http://www.umass.edu/fclang
The LangMedia Resource:
• http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
• Materials hub for independent language courses at
Five College, Incorporated
• Portal to language-related and cultural resources
freely available to users everywhere
What’s on LangMedia:
• Five College Mentored Language Program Administrative
and Training Resources
• Five College Language and International Opportunities
Web: Study Abroad, Summer Intensives, Work and
Volunteer Opportunities
• Course Materials for language students
• CultureTalk Islamic Worlds
• CultureTalk Critical Languages and Cultures (forthcoming)
• A variety of legacy projects such as the Language by
Country collection
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Five College Mentored Language Program
Administrative and Training Resources
• Student online orientation
• Course syllabi: Arabic, Hindi, Pashto, Persian, Swahili, Turkish, Urdu and
Yoruba
• Best Practices for Individual Tutorials (tips and video examples)
• Best Practices for Conversation Sessions (tips and video examples)
• Five College Language Opportunity Web (study abroad, intensive language
courses, graduate education and vocations for students with interest in
languages and international studies)
• How to Organize a Mentored Language Program: Essential Elements
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
LCTL course materials including:
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Formal Spoken Arabic dialogue collection
Colloquial Levantine Audio and Video collection
A Hundred and One Rules by Mohammed Jiyad
Hindi dictation exercises
Hindi grammar videos
Persian dictation exercises
Online audio for Kiswahili Kwa Kitendo by Sharifa Zawawi
Online audio for Kiswahili by Thomas Hinnebusch and Sarah M. Mirza
The Cloth that Speaks:Kanga by Sharifa Zawawi
Turkish dictation exercises
Turkish vocabulary building exercises
A Turkish alphabet book
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
Five College Language and International
Opportunities Web:
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Information links by language and region
Study abroad
Intensive language courses
Graduate education
Vocations for students with interest in languages and
international studies
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
CultureTalk Islamic Worlds:
• Funded by US Department of Education
• Highlights the geographic, cultural and linguistic
diversity of Muslim populations around the world
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu
CultureTalk Islamic Worlds:
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CultureTalk Africa: Ethiopia, Ghana, Senegal, Tanzania, North African, Western Sahara–Hassaniya Arabic
CultureTalk Arab World: Arab Levant, Egypt, North Africa, Western Sahara-Hassaniya Arabic, Yemen,
Coming soon: Iraq
CultureTalk Eastern Europe and Turkey: Albania, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Ahiska (Meskhetian) Turks
CultureTalk Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Ahiska
(Meskhetian) Turks
CultureTalk Central-South Asia: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Kashmir, Pakistan
CultureTalk Southeast Asia: Indonesia
CultureTalk Indexes:
– CultureTalk by Region and Country
– CultureTalk Indexed by Topic
– CultureTalk for Elementary School
– CultureTalk for Middle School
– CultureTalk for High School
http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu