At Cégep de l’Outaouais, we brought together 2 disciplines, Multimedia and ESL, to create the ESL Virtual Writing Support Centre. We (Mathieu, a multimedia teacher, and Kathleen, an ESL teacher) worked collaboratively to design a project that would provide an authentic learning experience for our multimedia students while producing engaging materials for ESL learners. Under our supervision, several multimedia students were involved in the creation of the project on different levels. The result is a free, innovative online resource featuring short instructional videos, practical tools, and real student examples that can be used in flipped classrooms or for independent learning to support ESL learners.
When ESL meets multimedia
The project started with Kathleen asking herself: “How can I better support my ESL students during in-class writing sessions?”
She often relied on online university resources to help her students develop their academic writing skills. However, she realized that very few materials were truly adapted to the CEGEP ESL context. What was missing were clear, concise explanations and authentic examples created by students like them.
That’s when Kathleen came up with the idea of collaborating with a multimedia teacher to create engaging instructional material specifically designed for CEGEP ESL students. She therefore reached out to Mathieu.
We sat down, exchanged ideas, and quickly agreed on a common goal: to create a digital platform where students could access not only explanatory videos and writing tools, but also see authentic writing samples.
From the start, Kathleen envisioned using the platform in a flipped classroom model. By watching short videos and reviewing materials at home, students could come to class already equipped with a basic understanding of the writing task. This approach would free up class time for deeper learning activities, collaboration, and feedback. The flipped model also provided a timely solution to one of today’s biggest pedagogical challenges: authorship in the age of AI. When students complete writing tasks in class after learning the theory at home, teachers can more confidently assess each student’s work as being authentic.
For Mathieu, the project aligned perfectly with the Multimedia program’s focus on digital content creation and broadcasting. Students could reinvest their technical skills in areas such as:
- website design
- e-learning
- video creation
- storyboarding
- scriptwriting
- document layout
This collaboration offered his students the chance to work on a real project with a real mandate, applying their technical and creative skills in an authentic educational context.
With a shared vision in place, we applied for an Entente Canada-Québec (ECQ) grant to fund the project and purchase the necessary equipment for video production. Once we secured the funding, we launched the project, which was set up to be a year-long collaboration between ESL and multimedia.
Phase 1: a pilot video (Fall 2024)
Creating the platform was a collaborative process from the very beginning. In Fall 2024, we began by defining the direction the project should take. To better understand the scope, we decided to start with a pilot video. This 1st video would serve as a test run to explore the filming, editing, and production process.
Mathieu recruited 4 multimedia students in their 3rd year to take on the filming, while Kathleen wrote the scenario for the video, focusing on how to write an effective essay introduction. Under Mathieu’s guidance, the small team filmed Kathleen in front of a green screen.
At this point, we noticed that we were doing most of the work, even though the project was meant to be for students by students. To correct this, Mathieu integrated the project into his Media Production (Production médiatique) course as part of the students’ capstone project.
In this course, 3rd-year students prepare for the job market through simulated professional mandates. The ESL Virtual Writing Support Centre became one such mandate. Students competed (individually or in teams) to produce the best video using the raw footage from the pilot. The project counted for 40% of their final grade, and the winning team received an $800 bursary.
During the semester, 3 client meetings were held. Kathleen acted as the client while Mathieu guided his students on how to:
- welcome a client
- conduct a needs analysis
- take notes
- deliver a sales pitch
During the 1st meeting, Kathleen presented the project, explaining that the goal was to create an engaging instructional video to help CEGEP ESL students write better essay introductions.
Every 2 weeks, Kathleen returned to see each team’s progress. Students presented their storyboards, mock-ups, and editing concepts while receiving feedback in English. Since the Outaouais region has a strong bilingual presence, this added an extra layer of authenticity: students were working in English, just as they might with real anglophone clients in their future careers.
Pilot video on the ESL Virtual Writing Support Centre called “How to Write an Effective Introduction”
For the final project, the emphasis was placed on the 3 Ps of evaluation (process, progress, and product), ensuring that both creativity and professionalism were assessed. This authentic simulation enabled students to experience a real-world professional context, mirroring the kind of client interactions they might face in the future. For Mathieu, it was an eye-opening experience. It was the perfect opportunity to refine the students’ communication skills, professionalism, and technical approach.
Phase 2: 9 additional videos (Winter and Fall 2025)
The 2nd phase focused on producing 9 additional videos over the winter and fall 2025 semesters. This new phase expanded the collaboration to include 2nd-year multimedia students, who were also taking their 2nd general education ESL course (B-block). The objective of this course is for students to communicate about topics related to their field of study, making this project a perfect fit.
Kathleen invited 5 multimedia students to participate in the project as an alternative to the traditional English course. Their English learning and course evaluation were fully integrated into the project, with Kathleen assessing their progress throughout the semester.
The contribution of these students proved invaluable. They were already familiar with the technical aspects of multimedia production and also its limitations. During their weekly meetings, students would work on the project, entirely in English, to:
- generate ideas for new video topics
- analyze real student writing samples and turn them into attractive, pedagogical PDF models
- learn from existing ESL materials (videos and textbooks) to understand the concepts better and identify strengths and gaps in the materials
- create scenarios and scripts for 9 new videos
Continuous oral evaluation was carried out during discussions and students also completed a personal statement assignment, following all steps of the writing process (brainstorming, outlining, drafting, peer revision, and final submission), which they submitted along with a recorded oral version.
Once the 9 scenarios were ready, the next challenge was production. We recruited volunteer actors, including ESL teachers and students from the Arts, Literature and Communication (Theatre option) program. The goal was to reflect the linguistic diversity of a CEGEP context, showcasing speakers with Quebec accents and also authentic English pronunciation.
To bring the scripts to life, Mathieu created an internal internship opportunity for a 3rd-year multimedia student, who took charge of the filming and editing under the supervision of Mathieu, as internship supervisor, and Kathleen, as client. This arrangement resulted in the production of 5 additional videos during the winter 2025 semester.
Thanks to the ECQ funding, the project was able to offer paid contracts to several students to film and edit the remaining 4 videos in Fall 2025.
By the end of the fall 2025 semester, we had 10 completed videos (9 lessons and 1 introductory video), now available on the platform.
