No 7, November 2021

MOOC and other entirely or partially distance learning devices often use English and fairly standard media formats, notably due to accessibility concerns. However, the implications of the choices made in the design of these educational productions remain insufficiently explored. This editorial seeks to put into perspective the cross-cutting issues raised by these choices, while identifying their determinants and consequences. We argue for the need to develop interdisciplinary research on these distance learning devices mainly based on videos. To do so, we systematically question how linguistic, discursive and media components are articulated in institutional and technical structuring contexts. We conclude by presenting the contributions in this issue, which is devoted to the role of languages and discourses in the construction of knowledge in MOOC and other distance learning devices.

Designing a MOOC in language didactics leads to being confronted with a set of paradoxes that can be analyzed in the light of the notion of system. Thus, the technical aspects, which partly derive from the constitutive principles of the MOOC object, act in return on the didactic choices and the methodological approaches implemented by the designers. It is in this perspective that we examine the choices made during the implementation of this type of MOOC, to develop uses that can be considered as "didactically correct", at the cost of more or less constraining adaptations or circumventions. To highlight the tensions involved, we consider the use of a model, which will be applied to the analysis of three MOOC in language didactics. This analysis leads us to highlight the role of discourses as regulators of tensions.

As MOOCs aim to transmit knowledge on a large scale, they tend to prefer widely used languages such as English and operate in a single language. This article discusses the role of plurilingualism in MOOCs and the mechanism of code-switching in particular, which can occur at various levels and involve, for instance, the place and use of subtitling. It describes the potential of plurilingualism not only for communicating knowledge but also for problematizing it, crossing the views of designers, users and linguists. This analysis offers scope for revisiting the tension between the processes of globalization and contextualization.

The ULiege MOOC "Moi, prof de FLE" focuses on the big issues teachers of French as a second language have to face, i.e. the characteristics of an FFL class, the principles of second language acquisition, and the creation of stimulating lessons to promote student engagement. From concrete examples of resources and activities, we will question the mediation of knowledge induced by this innovative teaching and learning device: what is the didactic potential of the MOOC and its effect on the mediation process (cognitive, relational and language)? Whether the mediation is human, technical or documentary, the device determines the didactic transposition: the posture of the teacher, that of the participants, the nature of the knowledge and speeches (ordinary vs scholar) in circulation. We will analyze more particularly the specificities of communicative writing and the enunciative polyphony of the teacher's discourse, as well as the types of individual and collaborative tasks and their impact on the collaborative and open co-construction of knowledge.

This study focuses on the role of multilingualism in the production of a video capsule for the dissemination and popularization of scientific research within the framework of an event promoted by a Brazilian university. Faced with the privileged use of Portuguese (the national language) and the hegemony of English in scientific production, we show the importance of the integration of multilingualism for a plural knowledge construction. The purpose of this experience report is to contribute to the improvement of communicative practices in higher education which aim to reach a non-specialist audience.

This article highlights some pedagogical issues that arise in the transition from two university courses to a MOOC. This reflection started with our master thesis on a MOOC project focussing on linguistic diversity entitled “Languages and diversity: from variation to plurilingualism,” which is currently in progress at the University of Geneva. Based on this project, we suggest reflecting on certain adjustments in content and discourse for in-person classes to be adapted to a MOOC.

This interview with Laurent Turcot aims to identify the way in which a teacher approaches video in his teaching activity as well as in a popularization activity intended for the general public on the YouTube platform. This interview focuses in particular on how Laurent Turcot came to video and discusses the design, writing, production and reception of his pedagogical/popularization video clips.

During the 2010s, the creation and sharing of video for educational purposes has grown exponentially. These practices have been made possible by the improvement of network quality, the democratization of technologies (smartphones, tablets) and the appearance of hosting platforms (especially YouTube). Thus, we have seen the emergence of new distance-learning formats based mainly on videos: MOOCs, SPOCs and hybrid synchronous or asynchronous training. At the heart of these new educational formats, these videos made it possible to articulate a subject and a set of images. However, they are often delivered as simple illustrations. In this context, how can we design relevant teaching capsules, integrated into innovative scenarios that take advantage of their potential and promote the co-construction of representations and knowledge? In an interview, Michaël Bourgatte and Laurent Tessier, teacher-researchers at the Institut Catholique de Paris (ICP), talk about their practices within a university laboratory project on educational innovations. They describe initiatives showing that video featuring testimonies and accounts of experiments can be a source of sharing between peers and, on occasion, the use of annotation tools can encourage learner involvement.