Intergenerational Telecollaboration: What Risks for What Rewards?

Foreign language telecollaboration pairs learners so that they may improve their language and intercultural skills. A lesser known model, intergenerational telecollaboration, uses senior citizens as native language partners instead of peers. This paper presents the results of an intergenerational videoconferencing project between learners in second-year non-specialist English classes at a French university and senior citizens in Massachusetts. Between September 2014 and June 2016, seven learners were partnered with seniors in order to practice their speaking skills. Based on the data collected over two years, this paper analyses the risks and rewards of intergenerational telecollaboration. [For the complete volume, see ED571330.]