Virtual Tandems

1. Virtual meetings

Connecting students with their peers from partner universities to carry out a series of virtual sessions.

2. Session content

• Duration: approx. 1 hour
• Tools (choose): Skype, WhatsApp, Zoom, Meet…
• Frequency: once/week (3 sessions in total)

3. Session content

• Session 1: Getting to know each other

  • Personal introduction
  • Family life and habits
  • Typical food from each country

• Session 2: University life

  • Typical day at university
  • Studies and relationship with professors
  • University folklore, student parties
  • Festive or engaged events organized by institutions

• Other possible topics

  • Traditional celebrations (Valentine’s Day, Easter, etc.)
  • Travel and tourism
  • Education and school system
  • Arts, sciences, sports, media, environment
  • Gastronomy
  • Famous personalities from each country
  • Societal topics: feminism, secularism, etc.

The session dates will be communicated later.

4. Written production

• A logbook recounting the experience

• Personal reflection on the meetings

• New learnings
• Surprising discoveries
• Errors or structures often corrected
• Feelings in the role of "teacher" of your own language
• (Other free points to add)

Practical tips

• Prepare a list of topics/arguments + useful vocabulary before the meeting
• Check the quality of the internet connection
• Alternate moderator roles
• Do not worry about silences (normal gaps in a conversation)
• Take notes to feed your logbook
• Schedule the next meeting immediately
• Debrief after each session to analyze and improve the next one