Overview
This French language module is designed for students who have completed FREN905/005 Intermediate French 5, or who have a good A Level, or who have a B1 standard of the language in the Common European Framework of Reference.
Through a variety of methods students will develop an upper intermediate competence in reading, writing, listening and speaking French and an understanding of upper intermediate French grammar. At the end of this 12-week module students will have reached a B1+ proficiency level in the Common European Framework of Reference and will be able to briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans; narrate a story or relate the plot of a book or film and describe their reactions to it; connect phrases in a simple way in order to describe experiences, events, dreams, and expectations and give their own opinion. They will be able to enter unprepared into conversation on topics that are familiar, of personal interest or pertinent to everyday life (e.g. family, hobbies, work, travel and current events) and to understand the main point of many radio or TV programmes on current affairs or topics of personal or professional interest when the delivery is relatively slow and clear.
Syllabus
Week 1
- Introductions
- Consumer scams – deceitful advertising and remaining alert
- Grammar: Impersonal constructions
Week 2
- Consumer scams – have you ever been a victim?
- Grammar: Double pronouns
Week 3
- Consumer scams – making yourself heard and making a complaint
- Grammar: expressing your feelings, using the Subjunctive or the Infinitive
Week 4
- Cinema – Different cinematographic genres and the lexis of French cinema
- Grammar: Expressing purpose
Week 5
- Cinema – what is your favourite type of film, of actor?
- Grammar: the relative pronoun ‘Dont’
Week 6
- Cinema – what makes a good film? A bad film? Paris on the screen
- Grammar: using ‘ce qui, ce que, ce dont’
Week 7
- Education: what makes a good teacher? The main features and key words of the French education system
- Grammar: expressing wishes through the Subjunctive
Week 8
- Education: alternative pedagogies
- Grammar: quantities and percentages
Week 9
- Education: the Grandes Écoles
- Grammar: reported speech and expressing concession
Week 10
- The Digital Age: how to stay correctly informed
- Grammar: the pronoun ‘en’
Week 11
- The Digital Age: how to disconnect
- Grammar: the Passive
Week 12: Written and speaking tests will take place this week. Completing the assessment is required for students taking the course as part of their degree, or if they would like to have the course recorded in their HEAR.
For all other students, taking the tests is also strongly recommended, as a measure of your progress and learning.
Textbook details:
Students need to acquire a copy of the textbook Entre Nous 3. Tout En Un: Méthode de Français
Livre de l’Elève + Cahier D’Activités + CD, Ed. Maison des Langues 2016, www.emdl.fr/fle
ISBN: 9788416273249 Approx. £25
Please ensure that you get hold of the right edition, as some students in the past have bought the wrong version and have had to send it back, thus postponing an efficient start to their course. If in doubt, quote the ISBN number.
We recommend our students to buy their textbooks from Blackwell’s on campus. They have a price match policy and you can pre-order over the phone with them and pick the book when you are on campus.
Study Hours
The total number of study hours for this module is 150 hours, in line with undergraduate university modules. This includes class meetings, assessment preparation and self-directed study in line with guidance from the course lecturer.
If you are studying on the extracurricular mode, we recognise that the total number of hours that you may be able to study every week may depend on your availability and previous experience studying languages, however, expected contribution to classes, homework completion, and learning outcomes will not vary.
Please note that the ‘last date available to book’ date is only a guide. We reserve the right to close bookings earlier if courses are over- or under-subscribed. In order to avoid disappointment, please be sure enrol as soon as possible. Registrations will not be processed until the following day if received after 3pm.
Course Lecturer: Dr Judith Aveling
Bonjour!
Thanks to my parents emigrating from Shrewsbury to France after they were married, my sisters and I grew up bilingually in the suburbs of Paris, where I also went to school. As a native speaker of French, I have taught this beautifully complex language for nearly 15 years in English secondary schools, often alongside Russian or Classics. More recently, I have taught undergraduates and for the last three years, in order to fit in with childcare responsibilities, I have taught students of Levels 4 to 8 for Open Languages.
Because I still have family over in France I go over there regularly, if only to get my fix of French cooking, stock up on DVDs, and bring back Reblochon cheese for the Winter’s Tartiflettes, and Crème de Cassis (or the Tesseire version for the kids!) and garlic.
When I’m not teaching I’m being a mum and wife, volunteering for my children’s primary school or for Merseyside Police, running a 5K (lockdown legacy), or singing for the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir and other local church choirs.
What better way to spend the year ahead, until our next Summer holiday in France, than to teach its language and culture?
A bientôt!
Judith
Fees for language courses are £180/£90.
Visit our fee bands page to see which fee applies to you.
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