Genuine Article Students Learn More Than French Through Teacher Exchange

French students at Rogers are getting a genuine taste of France this year.

Last September Rogers’ French teacher Josette Martin swapped places with Nathalie Audigier, an English teacher from Le College Olivier de Serres in Cleon D’Andran, a small village near Montelimar, France. The exchange lasts for the entire 1996-97 school year.

The Rogers’ French students say that learning a foreign language from someone who lives in a place where the language is spoken is a tremendous benefit.

“It’s a lot different because she can teach us the culture,” says Alice “Madeline” Schlosser (the quotation marks indicate her French name).

“Instead of just learning the language, we’re learning the way of life,” Schlosser says.

Paula “Sophie” Zammit says, “It’s interesting having a teacher from a different country. We get a better sense of what France is like, because it’s not an American teaching us.”

Martin lives in Audigier’s home in France, while Audigier and her 5-year-old son, Thomas, live in Martin’s home here in Spokane.

The two teachers’ classes have exchanged letters throughout the school year.

Audigier is enthusiastic about teaching in America. “I enjoy every minute of it,” she says. “Everything is exciting. Everything is different.”

One of Audigier’s goals is to bring France to the students at Rogers. She would like her American students to, “know what France is like,” and learn more about the rest of the Frenchspeaking world.

“I would like them to have an idea of what we eat,” Audigier says. “They should also realize that French is not just (in) France, but (in) other countries like Switzerland and Belgium.”

There are countries in Africa and Asia that are French-speaking also, Audigier says.

“It’s good having a foreign language teacher who is actually from the country,” William “Raoul” Vue says. “We don’t just learn the language; we learn the culture, their way of life.”

And how do young people in this country compare to young people in France?

“American students are really interesting,” Audigier says. “They choose to take French as an elective. In France, English is mandatory, so students are not motivated to take it. You also have a lot of extracurricular activities in America. French students just study.”

In addition, French students attend school on Saturday mornings, but they usually get Wednesdays off.

And while Audigier hopes her classes will pick up some French ways, she and her son are also picking things up from American culture.

She says that Thomas is, “really enjoying Spokane. He’s in preschool, learning English. He can now understand and make full sentences,” Audigier says.

Rogers principal Wallace Williams says that having Audigier in the school is “a wonderful and unique opportunity to have someone give a firsthand perspective from another culture. People need to recognize we’re getting a lot, too. Our teacher is there getting the same experience.”

Here’s a sampling of what the Rogers’ French students are learning:

Il fait soleil. Les arbres sont vert. Les oiseaux sont chantent. Le printemps est dans l’air. Vive la vie! (It is sunny. The trees are green. The birds are singing. Spring is in the air. Enjoy life!)