ABSTRACT
Two educational strategies are presented in this chapter: inter-collaborative peer learning and a self-assessment project. The inter-collaborative peer learning described here is designed to battle both the poverty of opportunity and poverty of interest by inviting native speaking study abroad students into a class of learners at the host institution. The theoretical background for such dual immersion courses is presented, followed by a case study conducted at UNC Charlotte that found that the participants enjoyed the course due to their ability to develop friendships and that pair work in which participants communicated with each other using their target languages was the most appropriate activity. The second strategy, a self-assessment project was created to provide learners with opportunities to receive individualized attention from their instructors. The rendition reported in this chapter focuses on Japanese learners at UNC Charlotte who self-assessed their performance weekly and then received instructor feedback, allowing them to better check the learning process of each student. The outcomes of this case study suggest that the strategy was generally well received by elementary and intermediate level learners, but less so for high-level learners.
