Dr. Edwina Spodark Hollins University www1.hollins/homepages/ spodarke/index.htm

1. The French Connection: Twelve Millennial Generation Workplace Characteristics and their Implications for Structuring the Foreign Language Classroom Dr. Edwina Spodark Hollins University http://www1.hollins.edu/homepages/ spodarke/index.htm espodark@hollins.edu

2. Millennials • In Millennials Rising (2000), Howe and Strauss identify seven characteristics of the Millennial cohort. These “seven distinguishing traits” mark the Millennials as “special, sheltered, confident, team-oriented, achieving, pressured and conventional” and, as Howe and Strauss observe, “[all] these traits represent a sharp break from the traits that are associated with Generation X.”

3. Millennials • “I have identified ten attributes reflecting values and behaviors that make up what I call the ‘information-age mindset.’ The first four relate to broad observations of change (‘Computers Aren’t Technology,’ ‘Internet Better Than TV,’ ‘Reality No Longer Real,’ and ‘Doing Rather Than Knowing’), three address how people do things (‘Nintendo over Logic,’ ‘Multitasking Way of Life,’ and ‘Typing Rather Than Handwriting’), and the last three are subliminal needs conditioned by the cyberage (‘Staying Connected,’ ‘Zero Tolerance for Delays,’ and ‘Consumer/Creator Blurring’).” Frand, 2000.

4. Millennials • Lynne Lancaster describes them as: “Globally concerned, collaborative, realistic, cyberliterate, media savvy, and environmentally conscious.” (2003)

5. The French Connection • Day One: Video presentation of the country/region understudy, computer lab time to do research for the computer assignment. [Week 1 = France, Week 2 = Québec, Week 3 = Francophone West Africa, Week 4 = Francophone Festivals and poster contest] • Day Two: Instruction in computer application/software program, time to work on computer assignment. [Week 1 = Web pages, Week 2 = Publisher brochures, Week 3 = Podcasting, Week 4 = Blogs] • Day Three: View a representative film from the country/region, roundtable critics’ discussion, write a review of the film. [Week 1 = “The Chorus,” Week 2 = “The Barbarian Invasions,” Week 3 = “Kirikou and the Sorceress”] • Day Four: Discuss representative literature from the country/region, introduction to music from the area, preparation and consumption of a representative culinary treat. [Week 1 = Maupassant short stories: “The False Gems” and “The Necklace”/Edith Piaf/crêpes, Week 2 = the short story “La Chasse Galerie” and the poem “Speak White”/“Mon Pays” and the “Québec National Anthem” by Gilles Vigneault/maple syrup pie, Week 3 = “Why I Can Sing” – a short story from Burkina Faso and “How the Sun Came to Dwell in the Sky with the Moon and the Stars” – a legend from Sénégal/worldmusic, raï, Khaled/5-cent cookies]

6. 1.Millennial Generation workers have a strong interest in foreign cultures and travel • “These days, recruiters say, it’s the rare resume from a millennial that doesn’t include at least a summer of study overseas, as well as volunteer work in developing nations, interesting pleasure trips to exotic lands, and fluency in at least one foreign language. In the 2007 UCLA study of freshmen, 52% said they were interested in understanding other cultures and countries better, up from 43% in 2002. And in Harris Interactive’s youth study, 8- to 21-year-olds listed traveling the world and speaking another language as their top two ambitions” (Alsop 2008, p. 17).

7. 1.Millennial Generation workers have a strong interest in foreign cultures and travel • “Michael Rendell, partner and leader of human resource services for PricewaterhouseCoopers: ‘To keep them from leaving, companies will have to give them more responsibilities early in their careers and offer them a range of opportunities, including international assignments’” (Alsop 2008, p. 20).

8. 2. Millennial Generation workers love and have a great facility for technology in the workplace • “A recent study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project (www.pewinternet.org) found that more than a quarter of today’s teens have created their own online journal or blog, and more than half create online content and engage in social networking. The workforce of the future will be more than familiar with collaborative tools and will consider their use a normal part of whatever they do.” (Doug Gale, Campus Technology, September 2008)

9. 2. Millennial Generation workers love and have a great facility for technology in the workplace • “By the time they get to the workplace, millennials…expect companies to give them on-the-job access to the same technologies they used in college and have long enjoyed in their personal lives” (Alsop 2008 p. 146).

10. Twinterns • “Twitter’s name may make it sound frivolous, but each tweet can carry the same weight as an official company press release and attract even more attention” (McDevitt July2009). “…Robinson seems to be doing a fine job thus far. She has increased Pizza Hut’s Twitter followers from 3,000 to more than 13,000 and successfully executed a sales promotion over the Fourth of July weekend” (McDevitt July 2009).

11. Computer Assignment #1: Regions of France Here is a list of selected regions of France for this assignment: 1. Alsace-Lorraine2. Aquitaine3. Auvergne4. Brittany5. Burgundy6. Côte d'Azur (Riviera)7. Ile de France8. Loire Valley9. Normandy10. Picardy11. Provence12. Rhône-Alpes Using Frontpage, create a website about your region of France for tourists.  Each website must: A. be a minimum of 6 pages longB. at a minimum, include the following information: 1. the location and history of the region2. information about the major cities in that region3. the description and history of the most famous attractions of the region4. suggestions of other places of interest to visit and why people should take time to go there (museums? historical sites? important monuments?)5. recommendations of other things of interest to do while visiting the region (festivals? sporting events? famous restaurants? specific things to shop for?) C. include at least 10 picturesD. use at least 10 different sources in its creation You must also hand in a list of all the websites that you used in creating your website so be sure to keep a list as you do your research. Below is a website that sells organized tours with a map showing the location of the various regions of France to get you started.  This is just a start!  You must add your own research as well.  Amusez-vous bien!   (Have fun!) http://www.yourfrenchconnexion.com/map-regions-france.htm

12. Computer Assignment #2: Regions of Québec Here is a list of selected regions of Québec for this assignment: 1. Charlevoix2. Gaspésie3. Laurentians (Laurentides)4. Laval5. Lower Saint Lawrence (Bas-Saint-Laurent)6. Montréal region7. Nord-du-Québec (Grand-Nord)8. Québec City Region (Capitale-Nationale)9. Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean Using Publisher, create a brochure about your region of Québec for tourists.  Each brochure must: A. be a minimum of 6 pages longB. at a minimum, include the following information: 1. the location and history of the region2. the description and history of the most famous attraction of the region3. suggestions of other places of interest to visit and why people should take time to go there (museums? historical sites? important monuments?)4. recommendations of other things of interest to do while visiting the region (festivals? sporting events? famous restaurants? specific things to shop for?) C. include at least 8 picturesD. use at least 10 different sources in its creation You must also hand in a list of all the websites that you used in creating your brochure so be sure to keep a list as you do your research. Below is a website from the Québec government with a map showing the location of the various regions of Québec and information about each region to get you started. This is just a start!  You must add your own research as well.  Amusez- vous bien!  (Have fun!) http://www.bonjourquebec.com/us-en/regions0.html

13. Podcasting • In “7 Reasons to Add Podcasting to Your Business,” Rodney Rumford notes: “Leveraging podcasting technology can give you a marketing edge that will allow you to increase your online visibility, increase your client acquisition rates and improve customer loyalty…Adding podcasting to your marketing mix can have tremendous positive impact on your business” (webpronews 2005).

14. The French Connection: Museum Podcast Project • Virtual Museum of Francophone Africa: Podcasts • Here is a list of selected Francophone countries in Africa for this assignment: • 1. Ivory Coast, 2. Senegal, 3. Morocco, 4. Burkina Faso, 5. Benin, 6. Algeria, 7. Mali, 8. Mauritania, 9. Cameroon • Using GarageBand, you and your partner must create a podcast about your country for visitors to the museum. These podcasts will be made available to museum patrons through our class webpage. Each podcast must: • A. be a minimum of 4 minutes longB. at a minimum, include the following information:1. the location and a brief history of the country2. information about the major cities in that country 3. the description and story of the most famous attractions of the country4. information about places of interest to visit in the country (museums? historical sites? important monuments?)5. information about things of interest to do while visiting the country (festivals? sporting events? famous restaurants? specific things to shop for?) • C. include at least 6 picturesD. use at least 10 different sources in its creation • You must also hand in a list of all the websites that you used in creating your podcast so be sure to keep a list as you do your research. • Below is a website that provides information about the various francophone countries in Africa to get you started.  This is just a start!  You must add your own research as well.  Amusez-vous bien!  (Have fun!) • http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/ [insert country name after the / and press enter]

15. Blogs • As Stephen Baker and Heather Green warn in “Blogs Will Change Your Business” (May 2005): “Look past the yakkers, hobbyists, and political snobs. Your customers and rivals are figuring blogs out. Our advice: Catch up…or catch you later.”

16. The French Connection: Festival Blog Project • Francophone Festivals: Blogging the Cultural Experience • Here is a list of selected Francophone Festivals for this assignment: • 1. Festival d’Automne à Paris, 2. Festival d’Avignon, 3. Festival de Cannes, 4. Festival d’été de Québec, 5. Carnaval de Québec, 6. Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, 7. Festival Juste pour rire, 8. Journées Cinématographiques de Carthage • You and a friend are attending one of the festivals listed above. Using blogger.com, you and your partner must create a fictional blog about your visit to you francophone festival. You will blog about your experiences at the festival, the events you attend and the sites that you see. Remember: Your blog will be read by others interested in attending these festivals and they may ask you questions about your experiences to which you must respond. Each blog must: • A. be a minimum of 6 entries longB. at a minimum, include the following information:1. a description of the festival and its francophone setting2. information about the types of events that happen at the festival3. a description of at least 4 events that you attend at the festival4. a story about something unexpected that happens to you both at the festivalC. include at least 6 pictures AND 2 sound clipsD. use at least 10 different sources in its creation • You must also hand in a list of all the websites that you used in creating your blog so be sure to keep a list as you do your research. • Once your classmates have created their blogs, you will be given the urls to read what they have written. You must ask at least 3 different people questions about their festivals. They will respond to your questions.

17. 3.Millennial Generation hires desire to amass skills on a continuing basis in order to move up in their jobs • “Millennials…want to learn as much as they can and have as many different experiences as possible” (Alsop 2008 p. 25). • “Their aim is to develop as many marketable skills as possible, and they expect companies to help them with their resume-building mission, even though they’ll probably jump ship after a few years” (Alsop 2008 p. 33).

18. 4. Millennial Generation workers need detailed directions and specific outcomes spelled out when working on assignments • “The need for explicit direction is a common characteristic of the millennial generation” (Alsop 2008 p.116). In fact, Bruce Tulgan suggests that: “…the biggest favor you can do for them is establish clear boundaries and give them a structure within which they can function with some autonomy” (2009 p. 66).

19. 5. Millennial Generation employees want to incorporate their own ideas into a project right from the start • “Gen Yers want to hit the ground running” (Tulgan 2009 p. 55).

20. 6. Millennial Generation workers have a propensity for working in teams • “They prefer a collaborative, team-oriented environment in which they can be heard and can feel that their views truly matter” (Alsop 2008 p. 38). • “[T]he Millennials like and understand the importance of teamwork” (McClellan 2009 p. 261).

21. 7. Millennial Generation workers want to have fun at work • As Alsop reports: “’They look at the workplace as a social organization, not just a job,’ one corporate recruiter told me” (2008 p. 182).

22. 8. Millennial Generation hires want flexible schedules at work • “Millennials…seek a flexible work routine that allows them time for their family and personal interests” (Alsop 2008 pp. 25-26). • “With the arrival of millions of millennials in the workplace, traditional work patterns may never be the same. Millennials…intend to become agents of change, pushing flexibility to the top of the workplace agenda” (Alsop 2008 p. 165).

23. 9. Millennial Generation employees have a need for immediate feedback from supervisors • “[M]any millennials expect regular updates on their performance and thrive on positive reinforcement. For millennials, the more feedback the better. An annual or even semiannual evaluation isn’t nearly enough for most millennials. They want to know how they’re doing weekly, even daily. Just as they can continuously see their scores and levels when they play video games, so they also want to keep a close watch on their ratings in the workplace” (Alsop 2008 p.98).

24. 9. Millennial Generation employees have a need for immediate feedback from supervisors • “Like many other achievement-oriented millennials, Solazzo values feedback so much because she saw its benefits as she grew up. ‘I was very involved in music and competed at a national level,’ she says, ‘so the feedback of my coaches and parents was how I learned where improvements needed to be made or where praise was given’” (Alsop 2008 p. 97).

25. 10. Millennial Generation workers want variety and change in their work environment • “Millennials have a low threshold for boredom, and flourish in challenging assignments that give them a sense of accomplishment” (Alsop 2008 p. 38).

26. 11. Millennial Generation students and workers avoid reading longer texts • “In a 2007 report, the National Endowment for the Arts…noted that the percentage of 18- to 24-year olds reading literature fell to 43% in 2002 from 60% in 1982” (Alsop 2008 p. 155).

27. 12. Helicopter parents follow the Millennial Generation to the workplace • “This pattern of helicopter parenting carries over once Gen Yers get to the workplace. Managers tell me every day about parents accompanying their children to job interviews and even, once in a while, to the first day of work….The big surprise comes when managers hear directly from parents, suggesting their children should be working fewer hours, getting different assignments, winning promotions, and receiving pay increases” (Tulgan 2009 p. 58).

28. In “Millennials at the Gate” (2008), John Hollon predicts: “They are going to do it differently, and like it or not, we’d better be ready. Once this generation fully takes over, our workplaces will never be the same.” Foreign language educators can help with the transition. By structuring our classes with an eye towards the Millennial Generation’s future, we can support them and guide them onto the path that will lead them toward success in the work world of tomorrow.