Aims
Aims
This module is intended to enable students to acquire a knowledge of the key aspects of modern French culture and society. Through the analysis of a variety of written and aural materials, students will be able to develop their linguistic competencies as well as their cultural understanding. This is in order to allow them to achieve a high level of fluency and accuracy in their production of written and spoken French.
Satisfactory completion of the course should enable students to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the key aspects of modern French culture and society
- Understand complex written and aural authentic materials
- Present and develop arguments effectively in both spoken and written French
- Achieve a good level of accuracy in the production of both written and spoken French
Programme
Programme
Contact hours
The module lasts the whole year, with teaching continuing until Week 4 of the summer term. The programme will consist of two seminar hours per week.
Teaching programme
All the lessons are conducted as seminars in order to encourage discussion and interaction. Therefore, completing weekly tasks in preparation for class discussion is an essential part of students' commitment. The classes will cover a range of themes related to current issues in modern France. Particular emphasis will be given to the development of analytical and critical skills, using authentic materials from a range of sources (television broadcast, newspaper articles, books, websites). The medium of instruction is French.
Teaching materials
Students should have a good monolingual French dictionary (either Le Petit Robert or Le Petit Larousse), and a good reference grammar (Towell and Hawkins (1996) OR Grevisse, Le Bon Usage).
Teaching materials will be supplied during the course, as will bibliographical references when necessary.