Conversation Partners Sign-Up, Spring 2023
Welcome to the Conversation Partners program at UWL!

Conversation Partners is a program of the Department of Global Cultures & Languages and the Language Resource Center. The goal is to provide students in our language classes the opportunity to meet with a peer and practice their target language in a consistent, relaxed, and low-stakes atmosphere. Conversation partners are typically UWL students with years of language learning experience. Some are heritage speakers of a language taught at UWL. Others come to UWL from outside of the U.S., so students get the chance to practice their target language with a native speaker. 

Each semester, we gather all current Conversation Partners for a volunteer orientation session during the second week of classes. The program begins in earnest the following week, which is when students begin meeting with their conversation partner for the first time. Conversation partner sessions are fifteen minutes long and take place at the Language Resource Center at 321 Graff Main Hall. Students in our participating language courses sign up for a time to meet with a conversation partner at the start of the semester, and they meet with the same person at the same time throughout the semester.

The program runs ten consecutive weeks, and conversation partners remain available for an eleventh week for students who need to make up a conversation they missed or get extra practice (or credit) before the end of the semester. 

Volunteers typically serve two hours each week and are paired with six students. Each student meets with their conversation partner for fifteen minutes each week. There is a five-minute break between each conversation partner session so volunteers have a chance to write a short assessment of each student's participation. 

Conversation partners are required to attend four monthly training meetings throughout the semester. Meeting dates are listed below. If you know that attending these meetings will pose a significant issue for you, please do not volunteer for this program.

Important Dates:
January 31 and February 1: Volunteer Orientation Sessions, 6pm at the LRC (321 Graff Main Hall)
February 6: First week of conversation partner sessions
February 7 and 8: Monthly training meeting #1, 6pm at the LRC
March 7 and 8: Monthly training meeting #2, 6pm at the LRC
March 13-17: Spring break, no conversation partner sessions
April 4 and 5: Monthly training meeting #3, 6pm at the LRC
April 24-28: Week 11 of conversation partner sessions (make-up week)
May 2 and 3: Monthly training meeting #4, 6pm at the LRC

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Dane DeVetter at ddevetter@uwlax.edu.

Thank you so much for being a Conversation Partner!
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First name *
Last name *
Preferred name *
UWL email address *
Are you volunteering as a conversation partner for the first time? *
If you answered 'Yes', which instructor recommended you for the program? If you have not yet been recommended, please name an instructor who could provide a recommendation. Otherwise, write 'N/A' *
If you answered 'No', how many semesters have you already served as a conversation partner? Otherwise, write 'N/A' *
Academic Year (in Academic Year 2022-2023) *
Do you plan on graduating this semester? *
Your major(s) *
Your minor(s) and/or certificate(s) *
Have you studied abroad? *
If 'Yes,' where did you study abroad? If you are an international student at UWL, please let me know where you are from (city, country). Otherwise, please write 'N/A' *
Do you currently have a job? *
If 'Yes,' where do you work?
Do you have any food allergies or dietary restrictions? *
Are you a native or heritage speaker of a language other than English? *
If yes, what is your native or heritage language?
Please list below which (if any) language classes you have previously taken at UWL. *
If you are currently taking a language course at UWL this semester, please include which course(s) below. *
For which language will you be serving as a conversation partner? *
How many hours would you like to volunteer each week? (Most volunteer two hours per week) *
Would you prefer one long shift or multiple short shifts? *
What days and times are you available to volunteer during the week? 

Please note: The LRC is open 10am-6pm Mondays-Thursdays and 10am-3pm on Fridays. Please plan on volunteering during those times. If possible, list a few different options that would fit your schedule, and I can try to schedule you at your preferred time.
Do you prefer to work with 100, 200, or 300-level students? *
Would you be interested in being a language tutor at the LRC? Limited paid tutoring opportunities may be available. *
When is your birthday? *
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