
Driven by the goal of helping students at all levels appreciate the complex, multiple perspectives that exist among speakers of Russian, and to supplement existing video materials for Russian instruction, I spent the summer of 2015 videotaping interviews of native Russian speakers responding to various questions about their lives and values. These interviews allow students access to a wider range of Russian voices and perspectives that any one teacher can provide, while targeting the development of cultural competence and listening comprehension. In my presentation I will describe these interviews and outline some video-centered lessons I piloted this semester in the intermediate/advanced level, and discuss plans for the use of these videos in a heritage Russian class.