Education

C M Y K Winnipeg Free press - saturDaY, august 1, 2015 5 Turnthethings thatinterestyou intoachallenging, rewarding career.You willgetpaid whileyou learnand, insome cases,your tuitioncosts mayeven becovered. Findoutmoreat manitoba.ca/ tradecareeers TURNYOUR INTERESTSINTOA CAREER Once a student has learned to speak a new language, learning to think in that language is the next hurdle. Immersion programs can help. n o matter how confident a student feels in a structured setting, conversing with native language speakers can be intimidating. Université de Saint-Boniface has expanded its conversational French and Spanish programs in order to address this issue. Both programs will now give students more opportunities to practise their skills with native language speakers. "Our Conversational French program has a new series of workshops that are perfect for students who want extra chances to speak French," says Erika Morin-Nett, language programs co- ordinator at Université de Saint- Boniface. "It will give people a chance to be more active in the francophone community, even if they're kind of shy and don't feel prepared." Each program will now have activities that encourage students to interact with the community. Before the activities, there will be two sessions to prepare. One of the places the students will visit is Accueil francophone, a welcome centre for French-speaking immigrants. "Our students will go, talk to the people, and find out about their programs," Morin-Nett says. "This gives people a chance to put into practice what they've been learning in their classes." Université de Saint-Boniface holds Café Encuentro every month for its Spanish students. The group meets in early evenings on Fridays. "Spanish-speaking people are there to lead the group in ice- breaking activities. It's a very informal atmosphere," says Morin- Nett. "A lot of people have challenges going from the classroom to a less- structured setting. We're trying to build their confidence when it comes to conversing with native language speakers." Testing your language skills for the first time can be daunting. The university has developed these programs to help its students feel more comfortable, Morin-Nett says. "We're providing activities that are a little more safe so our students can ease into it," she explains. "Everything they've learned in class comes together and makes a lot more sense." Once the student has learned to speak a new language, learning to think in that language is the next hurdle. Immersion programs can help. "We have a super one-week immersion program called Élan. Élan students are in class every day, all day, plus a couple of evenings," says Morin-Nett. "Élan is perfect for people who have the basics but who struggle to think in French." Élan will be offered at the end of October this year, with the theme "Let's make room for art." "It's going to be about all different kinds of arts. It could feature the theatre or music — it's about the arts in general," Morin-Nett says. "A lot of cultural activities and meals are integrated into this program." An immersion program like Élan can have a dramatic impact on the language skills of its students, she adds. "I've seen the students change, particularly in fluency. The speed they can speak at increases, and the number of hesitations they have drops. They get to be so much more at ease with the language." Students also learn where they can go on their own to interact with francophones. It's an opportunity to learn about various cultural activities in the city, including screenings of French movies. Professional language consultants develop all of the university's programs, which include classes for the francophone community's professional and personal development, programs for youth and courses for non-francophones who want to learn French or Spanish. Université de Saint-Boniface views its instructors as one of its greatest assets. All instructors must undergo a rigorous training program before they take charge of their own classes. "We're very picky with the people we hire. We get lots of comments about how our teachers are great, and we do everything we can to support them," says Morin-Nett. "We give our instructors materials they can use in the classroom and lots of opportunities for professional development." All of the school's materials are developed with a Canadian context, which Morin-Nett says has an advantage over programs that use curricula developed in France. Most of the university's programs run for 11 weeks, and there are four terms each year. The winter session runs from January until March, and the spring session from April until June. For more information on Université de Saint-Boniface's courses and programs, please see their website at www.ustboniface.ca. You can also visit its Facebook page at www. facebook.com/ustboniface. ■ Above: Edouard Lamontagne leads an interactive concert for the participants of FIT (French Immersion for Teachers) during a sociocultural evening at Université de Saint-Boniface. Photo by Darcy Finley Université de saint-boniface Transitioning from the classroom to the real world is oneof the biggest challenges language students face. talk talk the By Holli Moncrieff for the Free Press cmu.ca IdeasLiveinCommunity...DiscoverCMU CANADIANMENNONITEUNIVERSITY ���������������������������

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