Longwood University
French 202
INtermediate French II
Spring 2007

Site web: http://www.longwood.edu/staff/edwardswa/courses.htm

Required Texts
Bravo: Communication, grammaire, culture et littérature. Text, workbook, and answer key. (Muyskens, Judith, et al.  5th edition. Boston: Heinle & Heinle, 2005.)  Students should also have access to a substantial French-English dictionary, and may want to consult Jacqueline Morton's English Grammar for Students of French, available at the bookstore.

Course Description
A course designed to help students further develop their skills in speaking, understanding, reading, and writing French, and to put these skills to work in a context that investigates the particularities of French and Francophone culture. This is a course conducted in French.  For a list of useful classroom expressions, click here.

Course Objectives
 By the end of the course, students will demonstrate an ability to:
      1. Understand the French sound system and put their conversational skills to use in everyday situations.
      2. Acquire a vocabulary and master the linguistic structures necessary for performing certain tasks in French, such as engaging, continuing, and terminating a conversation; expressing an opinion; expressing conditions; describing in the past; making an hypothesis; ordering food; expressing emotions and desires; and summarizing.
      3. Read and understand texts, watch and understand videos, listen to and understand recorded speech; appreciate certain aspects of life in France or other Francophone countries.
      4. Write short essays on an intermediate level, one of which discusses important questions raised by a French film.

Course Requirements
1. Attendance, preparation, and participation. Attendance and participation are mandatory and will account for 15% of the student’s final grade. For purposes of notation, “participation” is defined as physical attendance, active contribution in class, obvious preparation, and willingness to speak French.  As stated in the student handbook, “Students are expected to attend all classes.  Failure to attend class regularly impairs academic performance.  [Moreover,] absences are disruptive to the educational process for others.  This is especially true when absences cause interruption for clarification of material previously covered, failure to assume assigned responsibilities for class presentations, or failure to adjust to changes in assigned material or due dates.”  If the student misses 10% of the scheduled class meetings for unexcused absences--in this case 4 classes--the instructor reserves the right to lower that student’s course grade by no more than one letter grade.  The instructor will also assign a course grade of “F” when a student has missed a total (excused and unexcused) of 25% of the scheduled class meetings, or 10 classes.  Absences will be excused only for the following reasons: illness, participation in a university-sponsored activity, religious holiday, or recognizable emergency.  Absences will not be excused for court dates, transportation scheduling, or doctor’s appointments.  

2.  Homework.  Because language learning requires constant revision and attention, students will have homework every night.  The syllabus reflects the nightly readings and workbook exercises students should complete before coming to class.  It is expected that students will use these exercises to prepare for class and to highlight areas of personal deficiency. Workbooks (cahiers) will be collected each week, and graded for completeness.  All assigned exercises are due at the end of the chapter, but one exercise will be collected at random once it has been assigned.  In order to receive full credit for the assignment, students must: (1) complete all assigned pages fully; (2) self-correct the exercises using a different-colored pen; and (3) turn the work in on time.  Work that is handed in late or copied from the key will not be recorded for credit.  Even in the event of an excused absence, it is the student’s responsibility to turn in all work on time.

3.  Labwork.  Students will complete listening exercises found in the cahier.  These assignments will be collected on the days marked “Labo,” and will be graded for completeness.  Students should download the exercises here and treat these exercises as those in the cahier.  That is, students must: (1) complete all assigned pages fully; (2) self-correct the exercises using a different-colored pen; and (3) turn the work in on time.  Students should take these exercises seriously; exercises on the test will be modeled after the ones from the lab.  Work that is handed in late or copied from the key will not be recorded for credit.  

4.  Chapter exams.  Exams will be based on aural and written work done in class and for homework.  Exams must be taken at the scheduled time, except in the case of an excused absence from class. 

5.  Vocabulary quizzes.  Twice per chapter, students will prepare for a 5-minute vocabulary quiz, which will take place at the very beginning of the class period.  Please be on time: missed quizzes may not be made up.  Quiz dates are indicated on the syllabus.  For each quiz, students will translate 5 words or expressions into English, and 5 words or expressions into French.  To receive full credit, each translation must include: (1) the correct spelling; (2) all proper accent marks; and (3) the correct gender, when appropriate.

6.  Compositions.  Students will write two 250-word essays.   Compositions will be written in stages on selected topics.  Drafts of the essay (ébauches) will be collected several weeks before the final version is due.  Work that is handed in late will be penalized.  Click here for an explanation of composition expectations and grades.

7.  Film.  Students are expected to view Amelie before March 21.  A copy of the film is on reserve in the library.  This  films will be the basis of in-class discussions and composition assignments.  Click here for a viewing guide.

8.  Oral exam.  The oral exam will consist of two parts, each of which is worth 50% of the total grade.  The first section is a role-play scenario involving a team of two students.  Five scenarios will be provided prior to the exam and one scene will be drawn at random on the day of the scheduled exam.  Students should converse for 90 seconds.  The second part of the exam is a short interview with the instructor.  Click here for grading criteria.

9.  Honor code.  Students are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with the Longwood University Honor Code.  All work submitted for the class must be pledged.
Grading.  The student’s course grade will be determined by the following percentages:

Programme du cours