Distance Learning: Russian by television???

[Steve Baehr]

As in most other states, the Russian enrollments in Virigina high
schools have plummeted in recent years. As the senior Land Grant University
for Virginia, Virginia Tech is considering doing a televised
first-year Russian course for students in high schools not offering
Russian.

I am wondering if anyone has had any experience with such courses.
Does anyone have any suggestions for texts that would be particularly
appropriate? For computer programs? For videos? Is there anything
already "packaged" for such a course. (I have a vague recollection
that someone did such a course on educational TV when I was still a
child in the post-Sputnik era, but I can't recall any specifics.)

Any help would be greately appreciated, since we are at a very
early stage of discussion of these possibilities.

Thanks.
           Steve Baehr
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Stephen L. Baehr (slbaehr at vtvm1.cc.vt.edu)
Professor of Russian
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Blacksburg, VA 24061-0225
Telephone: (540)-231-8323; FAX (540) 231-4812