Purpose: To develop an online course or a virtual Spanish classroom for adult students of Hyvinkää and Riihimäki adult education centers (and other places). The platform would include synchronized and/or asynchronized Spanish classes relevant to students and their unique context. This would respond to a need identified by all current teachers and administration during Covid-19 restrictions. Most language students are elderly people. Next winter, we might see a new period of restrictions and the adult education centers should be better prepared to engage the students in continuous learning in spite of the special conditions. 

The exercise would test how to transfer face-to-face classes to videos, synchronized and asynchronized classes, evaluation of internet resources, use of applications and other means. The key (and the interesting challenge!) is to build on the lessons learnt during spring 2020, and to prepare a proposal that is concrete, realistic and fully feasible in real life. 

This idea arose in my work at Hyvinkää and Riihimäki adult education centers during the confinement period, and the need to continue teaching using technological means. We were not prepared to face this emergency. I tried several options; some of them worked well, others not so well. 

The study would use the surveys to both students and teachers carried out by the adult education centers to develop solutions to real-world challenges.

Result: A virtual Spanish classroom for adult students of adult education centers in Finland in general and adult students of Hyvinkää and Riihimäki centers in particular.

This project will allow teacher students to evaluate, filter and apply online tools in teaching students over 60 years old.