The Institut national de l'audiovisuel(INA), a service of the French government, has as its slogan "Nous construisons l'avenir de votre mémoire." (trans: We are creating the future of your past). The INA Médiathèque is a rich archive of radio and television broadcasts available on the web. In three formats, QuickTime, Real Player and Windows Media Player, the audiovisual materials treat news stories, art, cinema, culture, history, leisure, popular personalities, radio, science, society, sports, technology, and television.
Type of Material:
Audio of radio broadcasts, videos
Recommended Uses:
May be used in class for discussion purposes and for advanced listening comprehension. Also can be assigned for independent study.
Technical Requirements:
Media player (Links to download on site)
Identify Major Learning Goals:
Students of French culture and civilization will learn from these authentic documents from French radio and television.
Target Student Population:
Students of French culture, civilization, and literature
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
An intermediate to advanced level proficiency in French
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
The INA Médiathèque contains historic documents that bring culture and civilization alive. It can be used to great advantage by bringing a multimedia dimension to lessons that would otherwise be restricted to print. Learners can view footage of De Gaulle at the Liberation of Paris, they can hear and see Jacques Brel being interviewed, and they can watch Salvador Dali in full performance mode.
The INA Médiathèque is searchable by category and keyword with a short descripton of each segment, its subject, and the length of the text. Users are given a choice of media players and are asked to select low or high bandwidth. The segments are carefully chosen for high audiovisual quality.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
Faculty who are regular users of video in their teaching will appreciate the short segments in the INA Médiathèque. Learners can undertake previewing exercises to activate prior knowledge and provide a context for the audio or video text. The video can then be played as many times as necessary in class or anywhere the learner has Internet access. Faculty can create comprehension and expansion exercises to follow video viewing.
Learners can also be encouraged to use the INA segments for research and for their own projects and exposés. INA organizes its materials in thematic dossiers in the section entitled "Voir et Revoir". There users can find such topics as Terrorism and the Media, Afghanistan, the Algerian War and French television, and the Cannes Film Festival.
"INA Raconte-moi" contains audio-visual coverage of the 20th century including all the key events in France and worldwide such as Pearl Harbor,
the Nuremberg trials, Princess Grace's wedding, and the French World Cup victory in 1998.
There are audiovisual quizzes with prizes for winners on the site.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
The INA Médiathèque has an impeccable design and straightforward navigation. The search engine works very well. The short length of the video extracts is just right for teaching and learning.
The use of the timeline in Flash and HTML formats in the "INA Raconte-moi" materials is well-designed.
There are separate contacts for comments and questions on content as well as technical concerns.
Creative Commons:
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