| Summary: | This study compares two types of English lessons, one face-to-face and the other via videoconferencing. The different indicators used come from the literature in the field, but have rarely been gathered in one single study. Based on these indicators, 18 video recordings of individual training sessions (9 face to face vs. 9 via video conferencing) were analysed. The onus was put on the analysis of verbal interaction as well as the number of gestures, some of them revealing the implication of the learner in the pedagogical relationship, others revealing the learner's technical awareness. In addition, the learners filled in a questionnaire. Some significant differences correspond to those found in similar studies. Nevertheless, many variables that usually discriminate the two training situations do not do so in this study, and indeed some run counter to expectation. More generally, the kind of differences observed challenges the evaluation of the distance and what we know about its effects, particularly its influence on language learning. Therefore, the authors suggest that distance should be considered as a contextual parameter rather than as a characteristic inherent to the type of training situation.
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