Tandem language learning (Brammerts & Calvert 2003, Helmling 2002) in its traditional form is based on two key principles: learner autonomy and reciprocity between two native speakers who team up to learn each other's language. Since its introduction in higher education in the 1960's, tandem learning has undergone several major changes triggered by the advent of the Internet, first with electronic written communication (e-tandem, Little & Brammerts, 1996) and then with virtual spoken communication through videoconferencing (Cappellini & Zhang 2013) also called Teletandem (Vassallo & Telles 2006). One may wonder whether the original principle of learner autonomy may be weakened by the willingness to embed such an informal practice into the formal context of higher education institutions. This paper will present the results of an experiment conducted on English/French University Teletandem exchanges with three pilot cohorts of students (each tandem pair consisting of a native French speaker and a native English speaker) over three consecutive semesters during and after the 2020-2022 Covid pandemic, which spurred the transformation from a face-to-face (Horgues & Scheuer 2015) to a virtual tandem set-up. A Teletandem programme was implemented between University of Texas at Austin (UTA) and Université Sorbonne Nouvelle (USN) in parallel with a free Teletandem practice programme at USN. We will address this question: To what extent does institutional integration contribute to limiting or, conversely, empowering Teletandem students in their approach to second language learning? Our method consists in intersecting i) a comparative analysis of the data collected in online final questionnaires completed by the French participants of each pilot cohort (about 20-30 students) ii) a reflection on the resources, pedagogical framing, and guidance provided to these same participants. The results show that some degree of institutional embedding, despite its assumed limitation of autonomy, is actually helpful to support collaboration and student engagement (Christenson et al. 2012), and thereby ensure a more stable and secure learning environment.
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