31147 - French Linguistics and Language 2 (A-L)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, students are expected to have acquired a good knowledge of some fields of theorical thinking on the structures of French language and a good mastery of the specific metalanguage of the discipline. They are expected to be competent in all communicative skills at B2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

Course contents

The French Language and Linguistics courses offered within the Bachelor's Degree programme are designed to highlight the main features of the French language across its various dimensions (phonetics, morphology, lexicology, and syntax) and to provide students with the methodological tools necessary to use the language accurately and effectively.

The syllabus and assessment methods are the same for attending and non-attending students, as well as for Erasmus students, who are nevertheless kindly requested to contact the course instructors directly.

The second year is structured into two compulsory and indivisible teaching units (4 hours per week, divided into two 2-hour sessions) devoted to preparation for the written examination, which includes the following task types: Résumé de texte, Analyse de l’image, Texte informatif, and Lettre formelle/Courriel. Students will be divided into two groups according to the initial letter of their surname: Manconi: A–L; Delfini: M–Z.

A further teaching unit (2 hours per week) is devoted to preparation for the assessment of oral production skills. Students will likewise be divided into two groups according to the initial letter of their surname: Delfini: A–L; Blair: M–Z.

Course Syllabus A-L (Martina Alì) – First Semester

The aim of the French Language and Linguistics 2 course is to provide students with the theoretical and practical foundations for the study of the sentence from both syntactic and pragmatic perspectives, with particular attention to language as a communicative act. During the first part of the course, the principal theoretical approaches to pragmatics will be examined, ranging from enunciative linguistics to speech act theory and linguistic politeness. In the second part of the course, these concepts will be illustrated through the analysis of authentic French-language texts.

Prerequisites

The course assumes that students who have successfully completed the first-year examination have acquired the fundamental linguistic knowledge and competences (including structural, grammatical, and lexical skills) required to undertake a more advanced and analytical study of the French language through the various learning pathways offered during the second year.

Competence assimilated to a B1 level of the CFR (level acquired at the end of Year 1) with regard to oral comprehension and production; written comprehension and production.

These 4 skills, tested at the end of year 1, will be further developed in the second year for the following aspects

- Phonology / prosody of the French language

- Syntax : morpho-syntactic traits of specialized texts

- Lexicon : lexis of specialized texts

- Organization of discourse : ability to argue and critically read texts and documents, and to produce argumentative texts and documents

- Adaptation of the linguistic register to the communicative situation as well as to the textual type under study

- Produce a coherent and cohesive, structured written text with a syntax and vocabulary conforming to at least CFR level B2.

Practical language classes (G. Delfini, Th. Manconi; M. Blair) [throughout the academic year]

1) Résumé de texte - Manconi: A-L and Delfini M-Z

The exercise on the skill of Résumé de texte aims, through practical activities, to develop

the following competencies:

- Comprehension of the text and its structure;

- Comprehension and acquisition of specialist vocabulary;

- Ability to identify the argumentative strategies present in the text;

- Ability to identify and extrapolate, in a coherent and structured manner, the morphosyntactic features, register and purpose of the text;

2) Analyse de l'image - Manconi: A-L and Delfini M-Z

The exercise on the Analyse de l'image skill aims at the acquisition of the following competences in the lexical, syntactical and analytical fields

- Understanding an image relating to fashion, advertising, the visual arts in general;

- Acquire the tools useful for understanding and interpreting images;

- Acquire the specialized vocabulary to describe different representations in and of space

- Produce a coherent and cohesive written text, structured, with a syntax and vocabulary conforming to level B2 of the CFR. Each text should consist of two parts: 1/ descriptive part and 2/ interpretation of the image.

3) Texte informatif, Critique/Compte-rendu, éditorial, Lettre formelle / Courriel

- Identify the morpho-syntactic features of each of these text types

- Identify the preferred connectors for these text types

- Identify the degree of formality/informality of the register in its linguistic manifestations

- Produce texts conforming to the textual typology, as well as a coherent and cohesive written text, structured, with syntax and vocabulary conforming to level B2 of the CFR.

In the assessment of the written production, the following will be assessed: coherence and cohesion, organization of the text, adaptation of the linguistic register, vocabulary and syntax conforming to level B2 of the CFR.

Preparation for the oral test:

The exercises in preparation for the oral assessment are designed to develop oral production skills in French through a two-part programme. The first part will focus on spontaneous oral production based on authentic oral and written materials (videos and audio recordings) covering current affairs, the press, multilingualism and the Francophonie. The second part will focus on exploring certain aspects of French language and culture that are the subject of public debate within the Francophone world, with particular attention to linguistic insecurity, glottophobia, inclusion through language and language policies. The aim of the language exercises (in line with level B2 as defined by the CEFR for languages) is to enable students to understand the main ideas in complex texts on both concrete and abstract topics and to present them orally from a personal and critical perspective.

Students with SLDs or temporary or permanent disabilities: we suggest that you contact the relevant university office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) and your teacher immediately to work together to find the most effective strategies for attending classes and/or preparing for exams.Any requests for exam accommodations must be made at least 15 days before the date of the exam, by sending an email to Prof. Luporini and copying (Cc) the email address disabilita@unibo.it (in case of disability) or dsa@unibo.it (for students with SpecificLearning Difficulties).

Readings/Bibliography

OFFICIAL COURSE (Martina Alì)

N. Garric, F. Calas, Introduction à la pragmatique, Paris, Hachette, 2007 (excluding Chapters 6 and 7).

C. Kerbrat-Orecchioni, Les actes de langage dans le discours, Paris, Colin, 2001 (excluding Chapter 6).

Additional course materials (lecture slides) will be made available on the University's Virtuale platform.

 

PRACTICAL LANGUAGE CLASSES

- Material published on the course teaching page on Virtuale

- A reference grammar: Grammaire progressive du français, niveau perfectionnement, B2 - C2, Clé International

Teaching methods

Official course (ALÌ)

Within the official course, the first part will consist primarily of lecture-based classes devoted to the theoretical and methodological foundations of the subject. These will be followed by practical sessions based on examples drawn from authentic French-language materials, both written and spoken, during which students are expected to participate actively.

The use of artificial intelligence tools is prohibited in the preparation of any written assignments and of the commentary required as part of the oral examination.

Practical language classes

The teaching activity will consist of two phases:

- practical listening comprehension activities on the basis of authentic documents on the topics outlined above.

- practical oral production activities based on "scénarios de communication" which will allow the learner's knowledge and skills to be tested and/or consolidated in terms of: cohesion and coherence of discourse, relevance of morphosyntactic structures, ability to reformulate easily, lexical repertoire, mastery of the phonological and prosodic system of the French language (see also the descriptors of level B2 of the CEFR for languages)

The objective of the language exercises (consistent with level B2 defined by the CEFR for languages) is to lead the student to understand the main ideas of complex texts on both concrete and abstract subjects and to express them orally by adopting a personal and critical point of view.

Preparation to the written exam [ESERCITAZIONI]:

During the course, practical activities of analysis, summary and writing will be proposed, in order to acquire and improve the competence of writing a specialized text at level B2 (CFR).

The course also includes activities to strengthen the syntax and lexical repertoire.

Preparation to the oral exam:

The purpose of the educational activities is part of a communicative perspective, «actionnelle» with which we mean the achievement of the educational objectives through the completion of defined communicative tasks.

The active participation of the learners will be at the centre of the practical activities proposed.

Assessment methods

Note: In order to sit the French Language and Linguistics 2 examination, students must have successfully completed and officially registered the prerequisite examination French Language and Linguistics 1.

To obtain the 9 ECTS credits awarded for French Language and Linguistics 2, all students are required to complete the following assessments:

1. The final assessment for the official course consists of an oral examination (in French). Two examination dates are offered in each examination session.

2. The written examination for the language practice classes, which must be taken before the oral language practice examination. One examination date is offered in each session.

3. The oral examination for the language practice classes, which must be taken after the written language practice examination. One examination date is offered before the written examination (for students who have already passed the written component in a previous session), and one after the written examination in each session.

The final grade is calculated as the average of the official course examination (50%) and the language practice assessments (written and oral combined, 50%).

Note: In accordance with the decision of the Joint Student–Faculty Committee (Commissione Paritetica) of March 2015, the validity of partial language examinations is limited to four examination sessions, including the session in which the relevant assessment was passed.

Official Course A-L (Course Coordinator and Examiner: Martina Alì)

The final assessment for the official course consists of an oral examination conducted in French. During the examination, students are expected to demonstrate both a sound knowledge of the theoretical component of the course (prepared through the lecture slides and the bibliography listed in the syllabus) and the ability to apply this knowledge to the analysis of authentic French-language texts. In addition to the examples discussed during the course, each student must independently select one authentic text to analyse and comment on during the oral examination in the light of the theoretical concepts acquired.

By the examination date, students must upload to the EOL platform a file (Word, PDF, or JPG format) containing the authentic document selected for the oral commentary. The file must clearly indicate the student's name.

The oral examination is marked on a scale of 30 points and is assessed according to the following criteria:

1. Mastery of the theoretical and methodological concepts presented during the course.

2. Ability to analyse the proposed advertising texts by identifying and explaining their linguistic (resources), semantic (content), and pragmatic (function) features, and to discuss these aspects in response to the examiner's questions.

3. Accuracy and appropriateness of spoken French.

PRACTICAL LANGUAGE CLASSES

WRITTEN EXAM [Delfini, Manconi]

The examination will propose one of the types/skills covered by the exercises during the academic year. Duration of the test: 3 hours.

It is planned to organize an in-progress assessment (2 partial tests) during the academic year (one partial test at the end of each semester), according to procedures that will be explained at the beginning of the course.

ORAL EXAM [Delfini, Blair ]

N.B. The oral exam can be accessed once the written exam has been passed.

The final assessment of learning consists of an oral production test inspired by the DELF B2 certification test, during which the student presents an argued point of view on one of the topics covered during the exercises, based on an authentic document (video or text).

The test is passed if the student has achieved a pass mark (18/30 or higher).

For the academic year 2023/2024, learning assessment will be organised as a continuous assessment through two tests (the dates of which will be communicated at the beginning of the academic year), which will be considered passed with a mark of 18/30 or higher for each test. The final mark will be calculated on the basis of an average of the two marks obtained in both tests. Any further details will be provided by the lecturers during the first useful lesson.

This method of examination replaces - on a voluntary basis - the final examination.

The same conditions apply to non-attending students who are invited to notify the lecturer by sending an email.

For further details on assessment, please refer to the lecturers' personal pages.

N.B. Students can pass the exam of the Official course before or after completing the written and oral exam of practical Language classes.

N.B. Each part of the exam is valid for 4 exam sessions (included the first one).

Teaching tools

PowerPoint presentations, audiovisual materials, and documents uploaded to each instructor's course page on the Virtuale platform.

Current affairs materials drawn from the French and Francophone press, advertising texts and images, and iconographic sources of various types and origins.

Office hours

See the website of Martina Alì