I have taken every opportunity to immerse my students fully in French by speaking exclusively in the target language during lessons, enabling them to practise the language actively. Students are usually eager to speak French, despite the initial apprehension that some may experience. My greatest success, however, has been seeing students consistently choose to speak French whenever they encounter me – whether in a corridor, on the street, or even by email – including the shyest among them. This, in my view, is the key to language-learning success. It has struck me on many occasions because, in France, the opposite is sadly often true: students frequently hesitate to speak English for fear of being laughed at. Imagine being mocked for having a French accent while speaking English, or for attempting to imitate a native English accent! Being a Lectrice also means responding to linguistic questions that I had never previously considered, making both the students and me better linguists. It also involves explaining grammatical features that many native French speakers do not consistently apply. For example, one may often hear je vais sur Paris when standard usage requires je vais à Paris, or j’irai à Paris après que je sois allé(e) à Marseille when it should be j’irai à Paris après que je suis allé(e) à Marseille. Being a Lectrice also means teaching the major historical milestones that form part of my culture, whether it be the French Revolution, May 1968, Zola’s J’accuse…!, and many others.
Alongside my role as Lectrice, and with the support of Professor Caroline Warman, I designed the Stella Prize, a new French and English Eloquence Competition in which all second-year undergraduates reading French at Jesus College competed. The competition consists of two challenges: students first recite a poem in French from memory, before analysing it in English; and they are then given a set theme – this year’s theme was les femmes – on which they must deliver an oration in French. Judged by Dr Marine Ganofsky of the University of St Andrews, Scotland, and the renowned French singer songwriter Laurent Voulzy, the competition has enabled these five students to engage with the study and recitation of French poetry, a practice deeply rooted in French culture – most French children learn at least one of Jean de La Fontaine’s fables in primary school. It has also encouraged them to develop critical and personal reflections on an important social theme while strengthening both their oral and written skills in French and English. I very much hope that this first edition will mark the beginning of a long and successful tradition.
In a nutshell, it has been an absolute joy to be a Lectrice: a joy to share my mother tongue and culture with students eager to discover them, and a joy to be part of my students’ academic journey at the University of Oxford over the past two years. Whether in grammar, oral language, or essay classes, or during the preparation of the Stella Prize, I have been privileged to accompany them in their learning, and I wish them every success in the future.