Rethinking Teaching Strategies for Intensive French

Abstract

This article gives the perspectives of three teachers of intensive French (IF) as they adjusted their thinking to teaching in a French as a second language (FSL) classroom that was very different from the core French classroom and developed teaching strategies to facilitate effective learning of communication skills by the students. Four major differences from regular core French are presented: the increase in time and intensity; the enriched curriculum; the atmosphere in the classroom; and the role of the teacher. Eight teaching strategies for the IF classroom are then described: always communicating in French; creating interaction in the classroom; integrating language and the experiences of the students; developing literacy skills; balancing accuracy and fluency; teaching grammar implicitly; sequencing tasks; and the need for variety and flexibility in the teaching strategies used. The article concludes with a summary for the beginning IF teacher of the most important teaching strategies.