69465 - French Language and Culture III (Second Language)

Course contents

The French language and culture module aims to consolidate the linguistic structures of the French language. We will focus on extended vocabulary, grammar and syntax with particular attention being given to an argumentative writing style ( “essai à la française en registre soutenu”).

Language fluency and reading / listening comprehension will be improved through the analysis of written and oral documents which will also address the social and cultural aspects of France.

The course will focus on:

- The technique of "prise de notes" and "compte rendu": strengthening the skills of listening comprehension through interview or conference extracts (10-12 minutes), note taking of the presented contents and writing in increasing levels of difficulty;

- Expansion of vocabulary that specifically deals with aspects of contemporary French society:

- The strengthening of grammatical skills: comparison of different grammatical structures between the source language and target language to ensure linguistic quality without interference.

Readings/Bibliography

Compulsory

• Lecture notes available on Moodle E-learning platform: “Réaliser une prise de notes” and “Améliorer son expression écrite”
• Articles available on Moodle E-learning platform

Recommended

Grammar book

Choose from the following

- F. BIDAUD, Grammaire du français pour Italophones, Utet Università, 2012

- F. BIDAUD, Exercices de grammaire française pour Italophones, Utet Università, 2012

or

- M. Grégoire, A. Kostucki, Grammaire progressive du français avec 600 exercices, niveau perfectionnement B2-C2, Clé International, 2017

Dictionaries

Dictionnaires unilingues : Le Petit Robert

« Les Usuels »

• Dictionnaire des synonymes, nuances et contraires, Le Robert
• Dictionnaire des combinaisons de mots, Le Robert

Dictionnaire bilingue : Le Robert et Signorelli, dictionnaire français-italien / italien-français, Paris, Le Robert (last edition)

Teaching methods

Teaching methods

The French language and culture module requires an active student participation.

Syllabus:

• Presentation of “prise de notes” and “compte rendu à la française” techniques
• Progressively graded practical exercises in the classroom (for compréhension orale / prise de notes / compte rendu)
• Vocabulary enrichment and in-depth grammar skills through “fill in the gap exercices”
• Particular attention to advanced writing style and argumentative reasoning (“registre soutenu”, idiomatic expressions, “expressions de la cause, conséquence, but, opposition, concession”)

Final exam preparation :

• Written homework assignments (via the Moodle e-learning platform) with individual feedback
• Group oral presentations : each group chooses one of the final examination topics (material available on Moodle)

The French language module will be supported by laboratory exercises (compulsory) which will be based on the course content.

The grammar preparation provided within the course must be completed and any gaps filled in autonomously by the student (Bidaud, Grammaire du français pour italophones oppure M. Grégoire, A. Kostucki, Grammaire progressive du français avec 600 exercices, niveau perfectionnement, Clé International, 2017).

Students must attend 70% of the class and active participation is required.

Assessment methods

French language and culture module :

The written test (3h30) includes:

- part 1 : “fill in the gaps” exercises ( grammar and lexical skills)

- part 2 : Listening / Writing: Comprehension of an authentic recorded document of about 10-12 min (interview or conference heard three times) and the written production of a "compte rendu" with focus on cohesion / coherence and linguistic accuracy.

Consultation of a French language dictionary will be permitted only for part 2.

The oral examination includes an oral presentation on social-cultural aspects of modern French society (selected articles and reportages available on Moodle– see Bibliography).

The final registered mark will be an average of the following exams : written french exam / oral french exam / french Italian dialogue interpreting.

Teaching tools

- Moodle E-learning platform (compulsory)

--> [2018-19] Langue et Culture françaises, 3ème année 2ème langue (Iafrate)

- Lecture notes available on Moodle

- Material listed in the bibliography

- Material provided by the instructor during the course (recorded from France Inter and France Culture radio, video documentaires / reportages, articles from Sciences Humaines)

A personalised tutoring service is made available to students needing additional assistance and can be booked by e-mail

Office hours

See the website of Samantha Iafrate