Unit information: Advanced Language in 2012/13

Unit name	Advanced Language
Unit code	MODLM2040
Credit points	20
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24)
Unit director	Dr. Foster
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	School of Modern Languages
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

This unit is envisaged as an optional training unit on the MA programme in Modern Languages, and is made available to taught postgraduates on other programmes. Based on existing fluency (normally an undergraduate degree in the relevant language), it enables students to achieve advanced reading and oral skills in one of: Catalan, Czech, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish. The unit will focus on (i) the higher registers of the modern language, particularly its political, literary and academic registers, and (ii) the language of cultural and historical sources of the sort that students examine in their units on the MA programme in Modern Languages. Through intensive tuition in a fortnightly one-and-a-half-hour class throughout the two teaching blocks, some conducted in the relevant language, and through extensive preparation for these classes students will develop their ability to express themselves on political, literary and historical topics and to read and translate into English sources and scholarship in these areas.

The broad aim of the unit is to develop the linguistic competence of students coming to the MA programme with a first degree in one of the available languages. Specifically it is designed to:

• develop students’ ability to express themselves verbally, fluently and accurately, in the chosen language on a range of topics from current affairs to literary and intellectual history;

• develop students’ ability to read and translate into English both primary sources and scholarship on the areas of cultural and intellectual history explored in the core units taught on the programme of the MA in Modern Languages;

• prepare students to read in the original the sort of material that they would have to digest in large quantities were they to go on to do a research degree in relevant aspects of literature, culture, history or intellectual history.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Students will build on the linguistic knowledge acquired at undergraduate level in one of the languages taught in the School of Modern Languages. They will learn to speak about literary, cultural and historical topics in this language with greater fluency and accuracy. They will also learn to read source material and works of scholarship in the original language with greater facility, and develop advanced translation skills with this type of material. They will be in a stronger position at the end of the course to proceed to research which will demand immediate fluency and familiarity with source texts in the relevant language.

Teaching Information

Fortnightly tutorials. Some will be conducted in the relevant language and will develop oral fluency in various registers enabling students to discuss and present academic material at a high level. Other classes will focus on translation of academic texts into English, and on advanced reading comprehension of such texts in the relevant language.

Assessment Information

End-of-year examination, consisting of (i) an oral examination that will focus on discussion of literary, cultural or historical topics; (ii) translation into English of an academic text on a literary, cultural or historical topic; (iii) an advanced reading comprehension. The three elements contribute one third each to the overall unit mark.

Reading and References

Key reading will vary according to the language of study.