Data from demographic projections indicate that the proportion of people aged 65+ is increasing rapidly. Consequently, seniors’ quality of life (QoL) has become an increasingly important issue for individuals, families, and society; it is also attracting growing scientific interest. Whilst ICTs have positive effects on seniors’ QoL (Nedeljko, Bogataj, & Kaučič, 2021), the latter can also be improved through the acquisition of new skills (Steptoe, Deaton, & Stone, 2015), with foreign language (FL) learning being one of seniors’ preferred activities (Kacetl & Klímová, 2021). In a study on synchronous remote oral tutoring (hereinafter called “e-tutoring”), Gazaille (2023, 2025) found that e-tutoring was a suitable tool for teaching FLs to seniors, with participants unanimously reporting satisfaction with the program, FL knowledge acquisition, oral skill development, and motivation to learn the target language. While the improvement in seniors’ digital skills observed in many Western countries (Eurostat, 2020) may explain why the e-tutoring program led to smaller gains in digital literacy, how to teach a FL to seniors remains a relevant question (Kacetl & Klímová, 2021), as does the question of the benefits of synchronous one-on-one distance instruction with this clientele. After six years of implementation, this replication study aims to examine: 1) the reasons for seniors’ satisfaction with synchronous e-tutoring, and 2) how these reasons change over time. The study adopts a mixed-methods approach to compare the first and last cohorts’ satisfaction levels and perceived benefits of the e-tutoring program. Data collection is underway for the current cohort; results will be presented.

Authors:
Mariane Gazaille, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Canada

About the Presenter(s)
Dr Mariane Gazaille is a University Professor/Principal Lecturer at Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières in Canada

See this presentation on the full schedule – Tuesday Schedule

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