Entertainment for the sake of cohesion
The Faculty of Languages of Strasbourg has more than twenty different bachelor degree programmes. However, students enrolled in the Bachelor’s degree Applied Foreign Languages (LEA) only cross paths with students from other language degrees, and the few courses they share do not make much difference. There is a lack of cohesion in the group. This is why, from the start of the 2019-2020 academic year, a major project will be proposed by students of the LEA degree, namely the Culture L Game. It will gather young linguists from the faculty around a common passion: languages.
The programme Génies en herbe (Budding Geniuses), broadcast first on Canadian, then on Belgian and French television, is the inspiration for this fun project proposed by and for the students. Just like the programme it is inspired from, this competition will test, in a lively and modern way, the general knowledge of its participants by focusing on their linguistic culture.
A competition combining languages and culture
The challenge for the students involved in the project’s conception will be considerable. Indeed, for the competition, they will have to prepare questions that are accessible for the students of all the departments of the Faculty of Languages. From Japanese to Swedish, from Russian to Turkish, from German to Portuguese, the languages offered within the faculty are extremely varied. This diversity of linguistic cultures will therefore have to be taken into account in the preparation of the questions.
Before the semi-finals and the final of the Culture L game, each department will select four young people to represent them. Simple elimination rounds between the teams will be held during the year to finally determine the four departments participating in the semi-finals. Supported by the young people of the Faculty of Languages, the teams will compete against one another in the faculty’s large amphitheatre for the semi-finals and then the final. Alternating questions with audio-visual formats and various challenges, the tests hosted by some students will be held at a steady pace. At the end of the evening, participants will win prizes determined by value -, such as intensive language courses.
Organising a cultural game
In order to contribute to the success of this unifying event, the students involved in the Culture L project will take care of the organisation, in addition to writing the questions. This includes mobilising technicians, planning the rearrangement and preparation of the amphitheatre, and planning the conduct of the events for the D-day. Also, the student organizers will have to take the necessary steps to obtain grants and funding from potential sponsors.