Objectives and content
- Listening skills: At the end of this course, you will be able to understand most of the news on television and programs on current affairs.
- Speaking skills: At the end of this course, you will be able to take part in such a fluent conversation that interaction with native speakers is possible fluently.
- Reading skills: At the end of this course, you will be able to read articles that are related to current affairs in which the writer takes a stance.
- Writing skills: At the end of this course, you will be able to give your own opinion on a current topic in a structured way.
- The grammatical topics that will be dealth with in this course are the following: questions, the use of past tenses (and l'accord du participe passé), the indirect speech, la concordance des temps, the use of frequent prepositions, the relative pronouns, the use of le subjonctif vs. the use of l'indicatif, the passive voice, the use of le futur simple and le conditionnel présent and the expression of condition, comparsons, a revision of the correct use and order of les pronoms personnels (COD, COI, en, y, etc.).
- The themes that will be dealth with in the course are the following: a revision of the description of a person's charachteristics and appearance, le cinéma (by mainly using authentic fragments from French films or series), le crime et le terrorisme (based on current topics and several authetic examples), l'environnement (vocabulary expansion and authentic reading and listening fragments), le monde du travail (vocabulary expansion, several practical and specific situations, phone calls) and the final topic is Paris, after which the most important aspects of the course will be revised.
- These themes also form the basis for speaking exercises.
- Listening skills are almost exclusively practised via authentic audio fragments and some current news fragments.
- The writing skills that will be practised are the following: a story in the past, a review of a French film or series, a short argumentative text on a current topic that is related to the course.
- Finally, authentic texts will also be used to practice reading skills.
Required prior knowledge
You have good knowledge of French and/or speak French on a regular basis. When French speakers are talking, you understand almost everything, even when they are speaking fast. You can participate in a conversation on familiar topics without preparation. You can also link sentences correctly. You use the correct tenses and verb forms.You still have doubts about several aspects of the French grammar (e.g. le subjonctif, l'accord du participe passé, le pronom COD/COI).
Tests
There is a placement test and a final test.
Before registering, you take the online orientation test. This test refers you to the course that matches your level best. To have a full and accurate idea of your level, you will take an oral orientation test during the first session as well. Based on the outcome of this orientation test, you may be referred to another course because it is more suitable for you.
Course materials
UCT course book. You will receive this book from your language teacher in class.
Recommended books:
- Bescherelle (2019): La conjugaison pour tous, Paris: Hatier
- Van Dale Pocketwoordenboek Frans-Nederlands – Utrecht: Van Dale
- Van Dale Pocketwoordenboek Nederlands-Frans – Utrecht: Van Dale
If you buy one of these books at Standaard Boekhandel Shopping Zuid, Woodrow Wilsonplein 4, 9000 Gent (in the campus shop next to the shop), you will receive a discount of 10% on the official price. Make sure to mention that you take a language course at the UCT.
Are you already registered for this course? Check out our FAQ ‘What to do after my registration?’.