Par ici: méthode de français by Nancy Desjardins (review)

This textbook targets adult immigrants to Quebec who want to learn to perform everyday language functions in French: greeting others and introducing oneself, deciphering signage, filling out application forms, understanding and giving directions inside public buildings, and so on. These functions are introduced in the context of a story that turns around Hélène, a fictional character ("Hélène s'inscrit à un cours de photographie,""Hélène fait connaissance avec des personnes de son cours de photographie," "Hélène s'informe sur le fonctionnement du centre communautaire"), with appropriate forms presented along the way: conjugations of the verb "pouvoir" in the context of requesting directions, prepositions to communicate location, the use of "ne... pas" to convey prohibitions. Overall, Par Ici is a highly curated guide that walks learners through basic survival skills in French, each lesson (or "épisode") targeting specific skills that learners need in order to effectively integrate into life in Quebec. But here the textbook may not go far enough. Episodes in Par Ici are designed to give a meaningful context to specific language functions, which teachers will appreciate; but surprisingly, no authentic content supports the real-life language functions. Images appear to be stock photos, or else drawn by hand for the purposes of each exercise; street signs are caricatures of real signs, sketched in black and white; maps of buildings are colorful cartoons with clearly labeled rooms. The real world depicted in Par Ici is either simplified or exaggerated for the purposes of highly targeted language work, which will lead teachers to ask: When the learner is left on her own to decipher real street signs and real buildings, how well will these lessons translate into actual know-how? My first concern with Par Ici is therefore that the relative inauthenticity of its content may lead to less applicability in the real world rather than more. My second concern is not unrelated and regards the highly controlled language use that Par Ici wants its readers to engage in. Exercises targeting receptive skills direct learners to respond with simple true or false answers, the matching of pictures with the names of things or actions, and imitations of language structures spoken by the voice actors on the two accompanying CD-ROMs. When learners are guided to produce their own language, this is similarly limited: for example, to transforming affirmative statements into negative ones, rearticulating in sentence-form a list of activities from a fictional daily planner, using "préférer" to detail favorite colors and foods. Learners are given very few opportunities for free language use, in sum, which is precisely what they need in order to progress in proficiency and begin to effectively function in real-life situations. Because of the tight integration of forms, functions, and (real-life though bare-bones) context, I would nonetheless not dismiss the textbook. Teachers could use it to scaffold a language class that is otherwise replete with authentic content and communicative tasks, to ensure that learners ultimately come away equipped to deal with the real, uncurated world where French is actually spoken.