Developing a website Learning Dutch.

The aim of the project is to create a website, inspired by the Learning English website hosted by BBC and British Council, offering second language learners of Dutch living in Flanders opportunities to practice their Dutch language skills and to extend their vocabulary and grammar knowledge while performing all kinds of tasks and doing all kinds of exercises related to content of topical interest. For this project, the applicants are teaming up with the VRT (Flemish Public Radio and Television Company), which provides the audiovisual content for the website (e.g. experts form news bulletins, weather forecasts, soaps, documentaries, life-style magazines ) and which has engaged itself to make the platform known to the Flemish population. Furthermore, the development of the platform is supported by a user group, which consists of a group of second language learners of different profiles (man and women, highly- and lowly-educated, different age groups and different needs profiles) who will try out the website at different stages. It is also supported by an advisory board that consists of a broad range of institutions, schools and associations, all of which have extensive ties with the target population. The project is funded by the European Integration Fund.

Keywords:audiovisual content, second language, Dutch, language learning, Website

Disciplines:Theory and methodology of literary studies