Understanding Italian-speaking Cultures and Societies (ab initio) - LAN00064C

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Module summary

The module analyses key aspects of the societies and cultures of Italian-speaking countries, with a focus on cultural, social, political, historical and/or linguistic topics.

This module will lay the groundwork for more advanced study of Italian language and cultures in year 2 and the final year.

The medium of instruction is Italian.

Related modules

Intensive Italian Language and Cultures: Beginners or equivalent level of proficiency.

Module will run

Occurrence	Teaching period
A	Semester 2 2025-26

Module aims

The module aims at building up, at a quick pace, knowledge, skills and strategies necessary to communicate and interact in Italian, and to develop, at intermediate level, a plurilingual and pluricultural communicative competence (i.e. students’ ability to use their own linguistic repertoire for effective communication).

The module seeks to consolidate and expand students’ written and oral skills.

Module learning outcomes

Upon satisfactory completion of the course, students will be able to:

• understand, with a satisfactory level of comprehension, straightforward factual information about a curated selection of social and cultural topics, identifying both general messages and specific details, if articulated clearly

• describe and present the topics studied with appropriate highlighting of significant points, and relevant supporting detail

• express views effectively, and use the language accurately and convincingly on a range of curated topics

• communicate with good grammatical control

• interpret and explain a document or event from the cultures of study, and relate it to documents or events from cultures with which they are familiar (including their own).

Module content

Students will engage, individually and/ or in groups, in communicative activities focusing on three modes of communication:

1. reception activities (oral, audio-video and reading comprehension);

2. production activities (oral and written production);

3. interaction (oral, written and online interaction).

The module will focus on a variety of key cultural, historical, and/or social aspects that have contributed to the construction of Italian national and transnational identities, ranging from the period preceding the formation of Italy as a unitary State (i.e. before 1861) to the first wave of the Italian diaspora and the colonial enterprise (late XIX century-early XX century).

Selected grammar topics will also be included, in the form of revision, exercises and independent study.

Indicative assessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100

Special assessment rules

Non-compensatable

Indicative reassessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100

Module feedback

Formative assessment and feedback

Formative tasks done individually and/or in groups throughout the module.

Students will be given:

• written comments for written formative work

• oral feedback during class discussions

Summative assessment and feedback

Students will be given written feedback and marks for their work within the University mandated schedule.

Indicative reading

Course materials and guided readings will be provided by the module convenor(s) in class and/or via the VLE at the start of the semester.