Online learning of Serbian as a heritage language in 2019

For the second time in a row, the Academic Serbian Association, in cooperation with the Faculty of Philosophy in Nis and the Technical College, has successfully realized the project “Online learning of Serbian as a heritage language” for students from the diaspora. During the project, Serbian students held classes for course participants from all over the world, and they had technical support by students of the Technical College in Nis.

This year, the project was realized 1-1-1, which means that one student had his student-lecturer with whom he studied the Serbian language and Serbian culture, history, and tradition. All students/teachers and students had assigned one student of the Technical College at their disposal as their technical support in order to eliminate all technical problems for the teaching process to run smoothly. The training for students of the Technical College of Vocational Studies was held by prof. dr Slavimir Stosović. The project was realized under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia.

The project lasted from May 20th, 2019 to July 14th, 2020, and 8 students of Serbian studies, 11 students of the Technical College, and 11 students from the diaspora participated in it. Marina Janjic, a professor at the Department of Serbian Language, held a training “Online learning Serbian as a Heritage Language”, which lasted a week after which students received a Certificate of Professional Development in the field of methodology for teaching Serbian as a native language. The project involved 11 students aged 7 to 14. The countries from which our students come are: the USA, Argentina, France, Austria, Canada, and Germany.

Textbook set “Serbian – the language of my homeland”

Within this project, an electronic interactive textbook set “Serbian – the language of my homeland” was released. The textbook set consists of three textbooks:

“When you are happy!” – a textbook for beginners;
“Oh, good news!” – a textbook for the intermediate learners;
“Raise your voice!” – a textbook for advanced learners.

The textbooks are made for children aged 7 to 14 by using the experiences and practice to make them. In addition to the material for practice, they contain sound recordings of given texts and games that will make it easier for students to master the material. In this way, students in the diaspora will be able to improve / master reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Such interactive textbooks are the first on the Serbian market, which will greatly facilitate the learning of the Serbian language.

They will be unique in that students will get to know cultural history, Serbian customs, and traditions through these manuals. The authors of the books are Ph.D. Marina Janjić, graphic designer Jefimija Kocić, an assistant with a doctorate from the Faculty of Arts in Niš and coordinator for technical support Ph.D. Slavimir Stosović. The texts of all three manuals were read by Ph.D. Alexandra Lončar Raichević and student Jovan Pavlović. https://asasocijacija.com/lms/edukacija/

After completing the course, pupils and students filled out questionnaires about impressions. The students received certificates of participation in the course “Online learning of the Serbian language as a heritage language”, while the students received a letter of recommendation for participation in the project. It is important to point out that this was the third execution of the Serbian language course organized by the Academic Serbian Association for the descendants of Serbian emigrants, and that there is great interest in it in the world.