Mac Training in France in English Or French By David A. Morrison

A new American university in France is using cutting edge technology to teach languages and provide students with essential new media skills.

In a prestigious partnership, St Edward's University in Angers has joined forces with computer giant Apple to offer a futuristic educational experience unique in Europe.

Academic staff are confident they can establish an international centre of excellence where students benefit from a whole new way of learning. You could even end up working in Hollywood!

The exciting project started when the highly respected St Edward's University in Austin, Texas decided to open a campus in France.

Originally founded by a French religious order in 1885, St Edward's has an excellent reputation in the US and regularly features amongst the top ranking educational institutions in America.

With its historic links to France, senior staff at the university were keen to locate their first overseas campus here.

What sealed it for Angers was a very warm welcome from local agencies and a commitment to work with St Edward's to establish a truly world-class educational project.
An opportunity also quickly arose to work with Apple.

The American computer and innovation giant was keen to establish a partnership with a university that offered both an extremely high educational standard and also shared Apple's passion for utilising cutting-edge technology as part of the learning experience.

The result has seen the St Edward's campus equipped with the latest technology to assist the students learn and enjoy their chosen subject in a manner that is truly unique in the world.

One example is in the learning of Business English.
St Edward's professor Angelo Keely explained: "We're using a completely different model from other Business English programmes right now.

"We offer clients the opportunity to tell us exactly what they need to know in English.
"For example, if a bank comes to us and they need to train their tellers to interact with English-speaking customers, we firstly understand what the tellers need to know in English and then we'll create a specific curriculum for them."

The method used will be familiar to millions of people throughout the world who enjoy a hugely popular piece of Apple technology.

"We prepare customised assignments for students on iPods and they then take them away with them," added Angelo.
"The iPod can contain video and audio information and essentially becomes their portable language course."

Your iPod also comes with a microphone. So if you think of a phrase or type of conversation in French you would like to understand in English, you can speak it into your iPod at any time. This will be downloaded by your professor who will then create a lesson in English into your next assignment for that particular phrase.

This allows students to focus on what they really need to learn and avoid what they don't.
Angelo added: "We can create very specific media for people to take home in their iPod and anywhere else and they can practice their English by slowing down or speeding up or repeating what they want.
"This is the future of education."

Another remarkable tool at the disposal of St Edward's tutors and students is the Apple Digital Language Laboratory - the only school in the world with this kind of technology for teaching language skills to adults.

This allows Angelo to work with a large group of students, but still treat them as individuals with their own requirements.

"Students complete assignments at different times," he said.
"What I can do is keep assigning them additional projects. That's one great thing about this system - it's constantly active."

Of course, all of this technology doesn't mean the end of human guidance.
"Teachers will be more important than before," added Angelo.
"You can get information about almost anything on the internet, but to learn quality information you will need a great teacher to provide this for you in a way that works best for you. The human touch is still very important."

St Edward's Business English can be taught anywhere in Europe and prices are very competitive compared to other providers. All English is also taught by native English speakers.

Anyone interested in going the other way, and learning French, is also welcome to contact St Edward's to take part in a training programme for native English speakers.

In addition to Business English, the university is also an Apple Authorised Training Centre and can prepare students for an exciting career in the film and music industries.

Final Cut Pro
Final Cut Pro is the number one film editing software used by advertising agencies and film companies.
Produced by Apple, the system is so popular that anyone aiming for a career behind the camera will have to show to potential employers that they have a good understanding of the product.

Logic Pro
Another successful media package offered by Apple is Logic Pro.
Used extensively in the music industry, the software allows anyone from an individual musician to a full symphony to record music to a very high quality without the need of complex and expensive mixing desks.
St Edward's can provide training for both systems, in English or French.

The dual-language feature will have an appeal to students sitting their Apple exams at the end of training.

These tests cannot be sat in French. Therefore, and especially useful to French students, St Edward's staff will not only train you to use the software, but also coach you in English to help you pass the tests.

This makes the university the ideal location to study Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro as tutors, of course, also teach Business English and have the language resources to help students be accredited for their understanding of Apple applications.

You could end up working in Hollywood, but you may start in Angers. For further information, please visit Mac training in France

David Morrison is a journalist with FrenchEntree Loire http://www.frenchentree.com/france-pays-de-la-loire the leading English-language website for anyone interested in this stunning part of France. Visit the site for details on property, tourism and more.