Dear Laura,

Thank you for your enthusiasm and your nice reaction at my presentation of the Bpi and the “autoformation”.

Here my aswers:

1. Could you please briefly introduce yourself, you professional profile, your main activities, your role within BPI?

I am a librarian at the Bpi, co-responsable for the Self learning Area and very mach in charge of the training session for my colleagues and for the users. I regularly welcome the public, hel them to choose and use the methos or documents (in learning languages, but also in other domanis like office software, highway code, maths, typing, accounting, management...). I’m also part of the team who buys and installs those documents. Before being a librarian, I used to teach French to foreign adults in differnt schools in Paris and abroad (USA). So, I’ve always been interested in questions of teaching, pedagogy, learning...And this “autoformation” area where people come to learn by themselves with our help seems to me a very interesting model of learning, at the frontier of a school and a library.

2. Can you describe the activities of adult people in the Bpi?

You mean at the self learning area or in general in the Bpi? At the “autoformation”, people come to learn by themselves on different subjects, on different materials. The first time, the usually come to us – we have a information desk – to ask how it wotks. We explain, we help them to choose one or several documents, then we give them a reservationt ticket for one hour (but they can renew easily), and they go to a booth to work alone, at their own pace. They can decide to stay more , or to quit, or to change the method , or to make a break..They aree free to organize their learning. The librarians are here to hel and give advice, not more. We try to turn inside the space to aswer questions if they have any. We are 2 or 3 librarians at the same time. We try to know as much as possible our documents to give a better advice (it’s not easy, we have a lot of docuements and we are a big team to work in this area –almost 40, but this our goal). Some methods propose evaluations, other not. When the users come back another time, they are more at ease usually, more autonomos. They sometimes just ask for a ticket and manage by themselves. But it depends on people, some of them like to be helped and are more demanding. We know that for some of them, this system of learning by themselves is better than learning in a class, because thay can handle their learning, decide of what to do, at what time, at wich rythm...they appreciate this freedom and they are not judged by anyone (teachers, other students). For those in difficultes with school, it can be a chance. Sometimes, we can feel that some people would appreciate a stronger help, not a course, but a kind of workshop (individual or collective). We are thinking of proposing this kind of workshop soon (how to use the computers, internet, photoshop...) and, actually we have started since last summer with the language conversation workshop.

3. Can you describe how the language conversation sections are arranged and animated? (for example: how many people in the discussion group? Is the group composed of people having the same competence level? How do you manage/animate the interaction? How can you define your role in the interaction with learners? How do you define the method you use?)

Since last summer, we have proposed language conversation groups in French, Spanish and English (English: we proposed only 4 workshops).

At fisrt, people had to register in advace. It was complicated to organize, people who registered often didn’t show up and other people not registered wanted to participate...We gave up this system. Now, people interested have to come 15mn before the time (6 pm), they can come once or several times or once in a while...There is no regularity asked. It is like a “language café” (with no café!). Normally, we manage to have at least 8-9 people and maximum 13-15. Sometimes, we need to make a microphone xall in the libarry to attract more people, and, sometimes, we have to refuse participants (not too often, fortunatly!).

The conditions to animate those workshops is to have the language of the workshop ad a mother tongue and to be entousiastic and motivated in those kind of group sessions. We are now 3 librarians to animate those workshops in French, I’m the only one with a previous teaching experience. In Spanish, my colleague who comes from Argentina, used to teach as well. The 2 of us started the experiment (in summer and automn), we’ve adapted ourselves to the situation and then, we decided of a kind of “format” which seems to us interesting, efficent, useful, friendly...Afterward we train our colleagues in this direction.

The workshop lasts one hour and 15mn (we started with one hour, and we thought it was too short).

The principle is that the animator decides in advance of a topic (linked to actually or not), propose a doment (like a photo, several photos, a drawing, a comic strip, a small text, a quiz, an add...extract from our own materials, or internet, or magazines...) and to discuss about that. We try to provoque a debate, a discussion, where everybody could say something. Sometimes we ask them forst to discuss about the document in small groups of 2-3 persons so that the most shy could have a chance to talk. The idea is not to “prepare” too much, we think that 30mn in a averange should be good. Otherwise, this is not a conversation group, this is a language course or a civilization course! We come with an idea of discussion but of course, if people feel like speaking of something esle, we don’t mind! Our document is a pretext. We are here to moderate, to make people talk, to explain some words, to introduce some everyday cultural notions...We try to have a friendly, convivial, relaxed time. We laugh a lot! People outside (colleagues, other users) are often jealous, because we seem to really have fun, and we did indeed! We encourage but we don’t force people who don’t want to speak.

People don’t have the same level: we don’t make any kind of tests or evaluation of course. We accept everyone, but we try to discourage real beginners –it’s not really adapted to them- and people too fluent. But actually, if those people come anyway, they often don’t come back, so there is a sort of self-regulation and we don’t really have to refuse anyone. Beside, the notionm of level is very ambivalent. Some beginners are so motivated or have a mother tongue so slose to French (or Spanish) that they can participate with a few words and have some benefit. Also, some fluent persons sometimes like to come at our groups just for the pleasure of speaking and meeting people. Other can get borend and leave. They come and decide. Moreover, they are quite helpful between eachother, the strongests help the weakests very spontanously, especially when they disuss in small groups. So i believe the difference of level is not such a problem, the motivation and the pleasure to talk is the key word. More than the difference of level language, we have to handle the socio-cultural differences: we have some Erasmus student in master or doctoractlevel, visiting France for their studies, some retired professors spending some long vacation in France,...but we have also some Afghan refugees waiting for their identity papers or old Asian ladies living in France for 30years but not mastering any French because they live inside their own communities...It’s not always easy to deal with those diffferences but it’s very interesting – I remeber a retired nice French woman in a

sapnish group asking a young Afghan guy where he usually goes for vacation! The poor guy had other priorities at time than looking for its next vacation! ...and I think the woman realised afterwords the incongruity of her questions. Other exemple: a topic about dreams (what kind of dreamshave you?). According to their age, their social position, their situation in France...the answers were really diverse, embarrassing sometimes – and we have to deal sometimes with some strange or difficult answer- but rich and fascinating for all the group.

4. Which are the main constraints encountered by adult learners in you experience in the Bpi?

You mean in the self learning area in general? Self disciplinYou mean in the self learning area in general? Self disciplin, self motivation, studying alone can be difficult expecially on a long term. When they have an exam, or a professional interview or a trip to prepare...they can motivate themselves on a short period of time and accept aesily to work alone. Otherwise, they can discourage themselves after while. We’ve noticed that our first CD’s or DVD’s or cassette’s or books (beginning of level 1) are most damaged so they are used. The upper levels are less asked! But as Isaid upper, for some people, self learning is a better solution than being in a traditional classroom with a teacher – eather they have a feeling of inferiority, or at the opposit, of superiority, but in any case, they are not at ease inside the group. They are more efficient and happy when they decide themselves about their own learning. (cf sociological studies made in 2005 about our public from Agnès Camus, Bpi, who interviewed some users).

5. How do you manage them?

The best as we can! We are present at the information desk to aswer to their questions and to encourage them if necessary. We decided to make all the resrvation ourselves – the learners could make them if we wanted, they used to do so, but we gave up system – so that we have at least a small contact with them we try to interact a minimun to see if everythink is ok, if they need help. ..we also turn arround the space to communicate better – we hire young foreign students who master different languages to work with us (recently. We hired a Iranian girl). We try to have the “right” attitude: nice, welcoming, listening to their demands...but not too intrusive and authoritarian, because we believe that if people come to that can of place, we should not bother them too much with our questions! It’s sometimes a difficult balance to find, especially that we are a big team to work for this area and not everybody feels the same way.

Voilà Laura!I hope it will help and interest you...Sorry for my mistakes in English. I didi my best but probablòy made a lot!!

You will tell me what you think, your opinion interests me a lot. Looking forward to hearing from you soon...Cécile.